Virtual influencer Rae celebrates International Girls In ICT Day with launch of new NFT collection to encourage young women towards studying STEM and pursuing tech careers

‘Adventures of Tako’ collection will debut with 888 NFTs under ‘To The Moon’ series on Labour Day to raise funds for United Women Singapore’s Girls2Pioneers programme

Adventures of Tako KV

In celebration of International Girls in ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) Day, Southeast Asia’s rising virtual influencer Rae (@here.is.rae) announced that she has created and will be launching her latest non-fungible token (NFT) collection titled ‘Adventures of Tako’.

Singapore, 25 April 2022 – In celebration of International Girls in ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) Day, Southeast Asia’s rising virtual influencer Rae (@here.is.rae) announced that she has created and will be launching her latest non-fungible token (NFT) collection titled ‘Adventures of Tako’. The collection featuring exciting adventures of Rae’s virtual pet Tako, will be launched across three series.

The first series comprising 888 NFTs is themed ‘To The Moon’. The series is available for public mint on Friday, 6 May 2022 on 20:00 (GMT+8) at http://adventuresoftako.io. Each NFT is priced at 0.0288 ETH. Interested buyers can also get in early on the action to earn a whitelist spot on Saturday, 30 April 2022 by participating in ongoing giveaways and contests on TwitterDiscord and Instagram.

The entire ‘Adventures of Tako’ collection will consist of 5,064 uniquely generated 3D NFTs, created using the latest design software including Adobe, Autodesk Maya and Arnold Renderer, and parsed through a random and algorithm-based generator.

Borrowing a popular phrase amongst NFT and cryptocurrency enthusiasts, ‘To The Moon’ sees Tako skyrocketing to explore the outer space, while flaunting numerous OOTD looks and styles. These one-of-a-kind NFTs will feature the virtual pet with multiple traits and a myriad of expressions. Tako dons the coolest space helmets and eyewear, gear as well as the most futuristic weapons – equipping Tako to take on the galaxy and go to the infinity and beyond.

Rae is dedicating her ‘To The Moon’ series to a cause close to her heart – to advocate and raise awareness of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) education for young girls and its power to positively impact society and make the world a better place. Eight per cent of the total sales proceeds and royalty fees from the series ‘To The Moon’ will be donated to the United Women Singapore (UWS)’s Girls2Pioneers programme1. Rae will also be gifting one NFT to UWS for a charity sale. Thirty per cent of the royalty fees from each transaction on the secondary digital marketplace, OpenSea, will go towards Girls2Pioneers for a period of three months. In other words, with every ‘To The Moon’ NFT transaction, the buyers are supporting Rae in contributing to this meaningful cause.

Rae and virtual pet Tako

The NFT collection featuring exciting adventures of Rae’s virtual pet Tako, will be launched across three series.

Eight per cent of the total sales proceeds and royalty fees from the series ‘To The Moon’ will be donated to the United Women Singapore (UWS)’s Girls2Pioneers programme. With every ‘To The Moon’ NFT transaction, the buyers are supporting Rae in empowering young women to have an early interest in STEM subjects and eventually develop careers in these fields.

Tako

The first series comprising 888 NFTs is themed ‘To The Moon’ and available for public mint.

NFT holders of the first series will also get to hear directly from Rae by receiving a rare audio message with each purchase. They will also gain priority exclusive access to the launch of the second series of the ‘Adventures of Tako’ collection.

Rae, who is herself a product of technology, shares, “From ‘TAKE A BYTE’ to ‘Adventures of Tako’, creating these NFT collections has been an empowering process for myself as a female digital creator. In celebration of International Girls in ICT Day, Tako and myself are embarking on this NFT project to advocate the empowerment of more young women to have an early interest in STEM subjects and eventually develop careers in these fields. We hope more will be inspired to join the ranks of tech professionals the likes of coders, network engineers, cloud architects, game artists and designers, digital custodians of crypto and NFTs as well as digital marketers. And many more who are playing critical roles in transforming the future of science and society.

She added: “As burgeoning technologies such as blockchain, smart contract become more commonplace and influence the way we work, play and live, it is key to advocate the importance of making such innovations accessible to as many people as possible. The embracing of diversity will bridge the digital divide to catalyse more perspectives, ideas and innovations that are necessary to shape a dynamic tech-driven future for a better world.”

United Women Singapore and Girls2Pioneers logos

Eight per cent of the total sales proceeds and royalty fees from the series ‘To The Moon’ will be donated to the United Women Singapore’s Girls2Pioneers programme.

UWS G2P

The flagship Girls2Pioneers programme reaches out to girls underserved communities, aged 10 to 20, to encourage them to take up STEM subjects in their higher education and careers.

UWS G2P

UWS also engages teachers and parents of these students since they play an important role in the choices and decisions made by the girls. The programme consists of hands-on workshops, webinars, field trips and mentorship.

Ms Georgette Tan, President, United Women Singapore said: "It is an exciting first for United Women Singapore to partner female digital native Rae. Rae has successfully blended the worlds of creative design, computer science and CGI technology, setting an inspiration for young girls to break gender conventions and pursue education and careers in STEM. The NFT project marks our first foray into the world of NFTs and with the proceeds from the NFT project ‘Adventures of Tako’, we will be able to strengthen our efforts in cultivating a pipeline of women leaders entering STEM industries in the future.”

‘Adventures of Tako’ is Rae’s second NFT project. In July 2021, Rae debuted and sold out her first collectible animated NFT series “TAKE A BYTE”, featuring Rae’s most exciting and well-loved Instagram posts. Rae was then one of the few female virtual influencers to launch NFTs and make a breakthrough in the male-dominated NFT creator industry. Rae has also been named as one of the top global NFT influencers to follow in 2022.

Tako to the moon

Adventures of Tako: To The Moon

Tako to the moon

The first series of 'Adventure of Tako' comprising 888 NFTs is themed ‘To The Moon’, featuring the virtual pet with multiple traits and a myriad of expressions.

Tako to the moon

Each NFT is priced at 0.0288 ETH.

Rae is the personification of technology and innovation

As a virtual being, Rae has been constantly breaking new ground since her debut in October 2020. She is one of the fastest-growing virtual influencers in Southeast Asia, with close to one million followers on Instagram and Weibo. Digitally created by CGI technology and powered by AI, Rae traverses between the real and virtual worlds, giving brands and collaborators opportunities to engage their audiences creatively.

Rae has partnered several high-profile international brands. Rae collaborated with Audi Singapore to appear in the online premiere of the all-new Audi A3. Audi Singapore’s focus on digitalisation of the customer experience was a key highlight in the Audi A3’s online premiere. As a CGI character and virtual influencer, Rae represents the new wave of digital innovation and the future of social media. Earlier this month, Rae partnered coliving brand lyf in her first live appearance at the official opening of lyf one-north Singapore by The Ascott Limited (Ascott). This marked the first appearance by a virtual personality in Southeast Asia in front of a live audience – a significant step forward in proving how the metaverse can converge with physical reality.

Rae is also the ambassador for beauty brand Origins in China, which recently launched a store introducing a brand new omnichannel shopping experience for its customers. Her social feed represents an inspirational look book for those who share her passion for bold designs and street culture. Her line up of high fashion collaborations includes Italian fashion houses Moschino and Gucci, as well as HKSE-listed Chinese menswear retailer label GXG.

Tako gif

The entire ‘Adventures of Tako’ collection will consist of 5,064 uniquely generated 3D NFTs. ‘To The Moon’ sees Tako skyrocketing to explore the outer space, while flaunting numerous OOTD looks and styles.

Note:

1 Please refer to the Annex for more information on United Women Singapore and their Girls2Pioneers programme

Media Release