Blockchain: The Ledger of Things to Empower People Through the Physical World
It’s all about the blockchain — even in IoT!
Blockchain is “an open, distributed ledger that can record transactions between two parties efficiently and in a verifiable and permanent way” (1).
The internet of things can benefit from blockchain, adding a reliable and secure information sharing, and automating actions and transactions.
Imagine digitizing every node in a power system to create entire peer-to-peer models (blockchain-enabled) of power production and distribution. Under New York State-sponsored program to increase energy resiliency even in extreme weather conditions, Brooklyn Microgrid is under way to create a community microgrid down here in the Park Slope area. This microgrid will provide resiliency in emergencies and reduce costs to customers while promoting clean, renewable electricity. Locally generated power is also more efficient than utility-scale model, which relies transmitting energy across large distances.
Similar companies can enter the arena to develop blockchain enabled services involving IoT. Filament offers hardware and software solutions that enable machines and devices to securely interact with and transact against a blockchain.
The benefits are promising. Imagine expanding this concept to support transportation, asset management of infrastructure, waste management, factories… Certainly blockchain implementation has many obstacles (like excessive computing power), but these obstacles are technicalities that will be solved as our organizations, scientists, and users develop more applications.
References
(1) Iansiti, Marco; Lakhani, Karim R. (January 2017). “The Truth About Blockchain”. Harvard Business Review. Harvard University. Retrieved from https://hbr.org/2017/01/the-truth-about-blockchain
(2) Blockchain Revolution: How the Technology behind BITCOIN and Other CRYPTOCURENCIES Is Changing the World (2016). Don Tapscott and Alex Tapscott.
