The ixo blockchain is live! Welcome to a new world of impact
Today the genesis block of the ixo public blockchain has been mined. A new world of impact has quietly been born. You are invited to cross the threshold into this digitally-enabled world, as a pioneer for sustainability. Here you will gain new super-powers and tools to deliver, verify and invest in impacts. You can become the founder of your own impact projects – small or large, and a stake-holder in projects you believe in. As the global community of ixo world pioneers grows, you can be part of coordinating and incentivising how change happens, to collectively create the world we want.
You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete. (Buckminster Fuller)
The mission
Over the past 5 years, from an idea that originated in 2008, the ixo team has been researching and building a new open-source model for sustainability. Participating in community groups across the world, we have discovered and contributed to core internet standards for self-sovereign digital identity and verifiable claims, using high-definition data. As these new standards become part of the web we use every day, this could enable people, organisations and machines to coordinate more effectively to scale impacts through decentralised webs of trust. By applying these new information technologies in the ixo protocols for sustainability, we believe that it is now possible to change the rules for how impacts are identified, measured, factually verified and valued.
To deliver this new world model, we have used blockchain technologies to build a shared data and digital currency infrastructure that will enable anyone to capture the value of information about things that matter and then use this information to program capital for sustainability.
Then we have built the beginnings of a kick-ass collection of open-source software tools and applications, with great user interfaces that make it easy for you to become the founder of your own impact projects, or a stake-holder in projects you believe in.
Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has. (Margaret Mead)
Why we need a new world
We all want to create a more sustainable, prosperous and fairer world.
The time is now, as we are on the threshold of the greatest economic opportunity and potential for profound positive social change in our lifetime.
This is also a great call to adventure, to create a new world!
Ok, I admit that this is a very positive way of framing the very serious social, environmental and economic current realities. But I do believe we have the means to turn these threats that face us all, into opportunities to collectively create the world we want.
Building a new world has never been more technologically feasible
To do this, we need to know where best to invest our time, our capital and our attention. To know more, we must share our wisdom, information and data. To achieve more, we must have more effective ways of coordination and more powerful incentives.
There is a rising global tide of political and social commitment towards creating the world we want
The established world order has made unprecedented commitments for this to happen — by the year 2030! The 17 Global Goals for sustainable development (SDGs) are the biggest crowd-sourced set of political, social and economic policy and funding commitments ever made by the earth’s institutions.
You are invited
Today you are invited to cross a threshold from the current world reality to journey into a new world of possibility, where we count what really matters and where we properly value what counts, for our well-being and survival.
ixo is a democratising technology that empowers everyone
As you adventure into this new world, you can build on ixo to access new information, connect with collaborators, give and receive incentives and invest in impact.
You will have new digital tools and data in your hands that can provide you with super-powers to amplify your impacts and enable you to know if you are making a difference.
The first step is to accept this invitation and join ixo as a pioneer member (which is free). This will give you a self-sovereign digital credential that serves as your passport to ixo.world
You own your data in ixo world and your identity information will not be used or shared without your consent.
Explore new frontiers
Now that you have your digital passport, think of a frontier that you want to pioneer — a project that could be large or small, local or global. For inspiration, explore a view into this new world.
Here you can see showcase projects by inspiring pioneers, such as digital artist and eco-activist Nazhia Mestaoui, with her project 1 Heart 1 Tree. This initiative has already invested in rainforest regeneration around the world, mobilising public support by illuminating the Eiffel Tower with digital trees and messages of hope, during the Paris Climate Summit.
What you can do today
Whilst viewing the flagship projects on ixo.world — consider personally investing in 1Heart1Tree, to offset the carbon footprint of your vacation travels, compensate for Christmas holiday season over-consumption, or make real your New Year resolutions to live a more sustainable lifestyle.
The great benefit of making an impact in ixo.world, is that all claims can be verified, with proof of impact. You will receive verifiable digital certificates, when trees have been planted. The same is true when children are immunized, carbon emissions are reduced, or plastics are recycled.
This is whole new way of organizing, verifying and incentivizing sustainable social, environmental and economic development. And this is just the beginning.
Launch your own project on ixo
ixo provides an easy entry-point for you to become the founder of your own impact project, or a stake-holder in projects you believe in.
Soon you will have access to a growing library of project templates that are ready for you to configure for your own projects. Or you can specify project requirements to implement a bespoke project for your needs.
Software developers, development agencies and fintech innovators will be able to use ixo to build powerful new types of financing and data applications that have not previously been possible. This includes programmable capital applications for sustainability, such as Smart Impact Bonds.
Impact Blockchain startups and AI-for-good tech companies can build on the data processing, storage and sharing infrastructure that is provided by ixo, to fast-track their own applications into the marketplace. Contact us if you would like to learn more about building on ixo, or how you can participate in an open marketplace of products and services that will grow the ecosystem.
The ixo protocol and software is free and open-source. It will continue to be created and built through the collective efforts of designers, engineers and data scientists around the world. Check out the ixo Foundation for more information.
Subscribing to ixo as a service
The ixo network is delivered as a globally-distributed public utility through ixo.world which does not require anyone to have to trust ‘Bob’s server’.
As ixo.world rolls out the public blockchain network, this will provide data processing and hosting services that are delivered by independent validator node operators (ixo Hubs) across the world.
To access these services, users pay for network transaction fees and claims verification services, using IXO tokens, which are the native unit of account on the ixo network. This is in some ways like a traditional software-as-a-service model, except that services can be accessed and paid for directly through any participating hub, without having to wait, or go through intermediaries or use currency exchanges.
Subscriptions to IXO tokens are available for purchase by ixo members, on the ixo.world website. Subscriptions include cloud-based project data hosting services, with each project having its own private data container that remains fully under ownership and control of the project founder.
During the launch phase, whilst the network is still in beta, pioneer members will receive a discount on their subscription of IXO tokens, which will be sold at transparent and predictable prices.
To learn more about the terms and conditions of ixo memberships and subscriptions to IXO tokens, please visit the ixo.world website.
The road ahead
As we soft-launch the public beta of ixo today, we are taking a bold, but humble small step, which we hope will ultimately lead to a giant leap for humanity to address the huge need to have better ways of knowing whether we are having impacts, together with more effective mechanisms to optimise how impacts get funded, delivered, verified and valued.
We are quietly confident of this potential because the ixo protocols provide a new operating model based on core Web 3.0 standards that are beginning to transform how the internet works. To learn more about the ixo protocols for data verification, programmable capital and digital identification, read the ixo Technical White Paper and sign up to the ixo newsletter, to be informed about online seminars and ixo hackathons in 2019.
Please get involved in growing ixo as a global open network of collaborators, including software developers, data scientists, development agents, impact investors and active citizens.
Together we will continue building, proving and improving protocols for sustainable development and transition to a whole new world of impact, as Web 3.0 goes mainstream.
Join the Community
Learn more about ixo and how to get involved at ixo.foundation (and meet the ixo chatbot who will deal with FAQs)
- Subscribe to the ixo e-mail newsletter
- Follow ixo on Twitter
- Join the conversation on Telegram to get answers to your questions!
- Like ixo on Facebook
- See the code and contribute on Github
- ixo is also on Reddit
- Email the team info@ixo.world
