An Introduction to Vechain Thor — An Enterprise Public Blockchain Platform

Crypto Suss
Sep 6, 2018 · 6 min read

Initially branded as Vechain, but recently rebranded to Vechain Thor, we recently spoke about this coin in our post all about earning passive cryptocurrency. This project however, is seeking to solve the real world issue of supply chain traceability and a whole lot more. Let’s take a deeper look at this project and what it is setting out to achieve.

An Introduction

So what exactly is Vechain Thor? According to their own website, Vechain is an enterprise level public Blockchain platform.

“VeChain aims to connect blockchain technology to the real world by providing a comprehensive governance structure, a robust economic model as well as advanced IoT integration, and pioneers in real world applications.”

Vechain CEO Sunny Lu has expressed that Vechain wants to empower the everyday person through blockchain technology. He is setting out to make Vechain into the largest blockchain for business activity in the world. By giving everyday users better access to information about products and services through blockchain technology, Vechain seeks to empower us and help us take back control of the world around us.

Lu has also commented on the limitations of smart contracts and the Ethereum platform. While he is indebted to the role smart contracts have played in advancing the crypto landscape to date, he is also very wary of their constraints. The VeChain Thor blockchain actually originated as a consortium chain that forked from Ethereum in 2015. In line with their vision they have tailored their blockchain to service the current and future needs of enterprises, governments and everyday adopters.

How have they done this?

The Vechain Thor Foundation has conducted interviews and surveys with hundreds of government bodies and corporations around the world. What they came to the conclusion of was three areas that blockchain technology must deliver on.

  1. A healthy governance model that protects the low-level users.

They have set about the process of building out their entire platform by keeping these three areas in their focus.

Enterprise Solutions

The Vechain team know that Blockchain tech is already changing the world. They are planting themselves in a position to reap the benefits of enterprise clients on ramping this new technology. Through their analysis, they are proposing a solution that will make it as seamless as possible for large organisations to integrate blockchain tech.

Just like the internet and businesses in 1995, many organisations have yet to fully embrace and implement blockchain to solve business needs and enhance processes. Vechain have now built what they call Blockchain X, which they say encompasses Blockchain 3.0, 4.0 and 5.0. They describe it in this way as they claim they are creating a holistic Blockchain which will be able to evolve and absorb innovation to satisfy the needs of its community.

Just like the internet has served the free flow of value, VeChain aims to capitalise on how Blockchain will enhance the free flow of value across a network. As they point out in their whitepaper, there will be many applications created over the coming years. These applications will serve exactly to the purpose of allowing the free flow of value from one person or entity to another.

Consensus Mechanism

Vechain are of the belief that Neither total centralization nor a total decentralization are the correct answer, but a balance of both.

The VeChainThor Blockchain therefore carries the creation of their Proof of Authority (PoA) consensus mechanism.

As documented in their whitepaper:

To be an Authority Masternode (AM) on the VeChainThor Blockchain, the individual or entity
voluntarily discloses who they are (identity and reputation by extension) in exchange for the
right to validate and produce blocks. It is their identities and reputations placed at stake that
give all the AMs additional incentives to behave and keep the network secure.

Vechain understand the need to have a governance system that is efficient and will also enable continuous rapid innovation. They believe that their Proof of Authority consensus mechanism allows for this and ties into their overall governance protocol.

Token

As we mentioned in our “earning passive crypto” article, Vehcain now use two tokens. VET is the smart payment currency for the VeChain Blockchain ecosystem. THOR is their new token that acts as the fuel for when certain operations are performed, like the execution of smart contracts.

With the result of the rebrand, all VET holders now earn passive THOR. If you hold enough VET in your wallet to run a node, you can earn even more. Nodes used to secure the network will have an even higher percentage paid out to them.

Ecosystem Overview and Application Development

So what does all of the above mean in a practical sense? Vehcain states that their original mission has always been to bring Blockchain technology down to earth and use it to deliver business applications that make improvements and solve problems.

Firstly, Vechain is integrating Vechain ID (VID) and RFID tags to mark products which will allow them to be scanned and digital representations of them tracked on the blockchain. They are connecting the physical and digital worlds.

They can then use smart contracts to describe the trust free business activities of these products. These could include things such as ownership transfer, authorization, production and much more. Using the programmable VET token, this will then evolve into a trust free, interconnected business ecosystem with products, services and business applications.

Real World Use Cases

If all of what Vechain is setting out to achieve it confusing you a little, you are not alone. They are taking on some serious challenges and it is a very ambitious project. They already have some real world use cases that might help to make their vision a bit clearer for you.

Fashion and Luxury

Vechain are targeting fraud in the fashion and luxury markets. Fake goods account for almost 10% of all fashion and luxury goods sold in Europe each year. Vehcain aims to solve the problem of counterfeit goods through product traceability. Leveraging Internet of Things (IOT) and Blockchain technology they will trace the life-cycle of products from the manufacturer all the way through the supply chain. Using the Vechain ID technology and IOT tags mentioned above, stakeholders will be able to recognise products at every stage of its life cycle.

Food Safety

Vechain are working to track, trace, log, and locate food in the supply chain using Blockchain technology. The Oversea Liquor tracking platform is the first example of this in China. This initiative allows the WaiGaoQiao group in China to track their wine production from the very beginning of the process. Every detail about a bottle of red wine is marked and recorded at the beginning of the process. Its journey can then be seen around the world. Customers can then identify and check information about the wine through in-store touch-screens smartphones.

Automobiles

Throughout the entire lifecycle of any vehicle there is so much data that is collected, transferred and acted upon by various people and entities. Vechain are working with a number of partners such as Microsoft France and BMW for example, to build out digital maintenance logs for vehicles. These logs can store information relating to maintenance service providers or workshops.

They are also building a ‘green driving’ module that can track vehicle diagnostics such as acceleration, average speed, gas consumption and much more. These are stored on the blockchain and can be used to incentivise safe driving behaviour. All of this data can then also contribute to vehicle resale values.

Even just yesterday, Vechain announced a partnership with BYD, one of China’s largest car brands and World’s Top Selling Plug-In Electric Car Manufacturer. They are leveraging smart contracts to track carbon emissions and drivers are rewarded carbon credits based on an emission reduction formula.

In Closing

The Vechain Thor platform is nothing short of ambitious. They have began the process of building out a truly global enterprise level public blockchain. With a number of initiatives and partnerships already in motion, Vehcain is powering ahead and building out the future of blockchain that they want to see in the world. Creating a blockchain platform that is seamless for organisations to adopt and gain efficiency from is at the heart of what they are trying to achieve.

Thus they continue to build out strategic partnerships. They already have partnerships with The People’s Insurance Company of China (PICC), DNV GL (global quality assurance and risk management company), Kuehne & Nagel (Global Freight Forwarders), Unilever, Danone, Michelin, Pernod Ricard, Givenchy, PWC China and PWC Singapore and many many more.

Tagged with: bitcoin, clockchain, crypto, cryptocurrency, vechain


Originally published at cryptosuss.com on September 6, 2018.

Cryptosuss

Helping the earth to understand the decentralised economy. News, reviews and tutorials for everyone to get started in crypto.

Crypto Suss

Written by

Cryptosuss

Helping the earth to understand the decentralised economy. News, reviews and tutorials for everyone to get started in crypto.

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