Blockchain + IoT devices lead to dramatic changes in the supply chain

Combining blockchain technology with interconnected sensors to provide a high level of clarity and security to the supply chain is something many companies are experimenting with.

The blockchain is a distributed database whose ledger is extremely secure and cannot be altered. The following two examples show how this database can be combined with physical devices to create economical and secure products.

Walmart is using blockchain technology to monitor products in its stores, according to Bloomberg. The retail giant will use this technology to track pre-packaged products from the birthplace of the food to the supermarket shelves. Blockchain will allow the company to accurately find out relevant information and reduce its major costs such as recalls. Blockchain provides a more granular way to recall and track products.

According to NFC World, a new drug seal from Chronicled combines NFC chips and blockchain technology to track and secure prescription drugs. The seal contains information about the contents of the prescription bottle, which is registered on the blockchain, along with the registration party and location data. This tamper-proof technology solution adds a critical layer of drug visibility, allowing patients and doctors to ensure that the drug is authentic and providing visibility into the drug's supply chain.

As more and more devices emerge and massive amounts of data are generated, companies aim to use the Internet of Things to create and use this data, and security and accountability will be major obstacles. Incorporating blockchain databases into IoT solutions can be a way to protect this data and enable devices to accurately register and report information.

Blockchain provides accountability that is not possible with traditional databases, where no employee can cover up an erroneous change to a database or attribute it to another party.

Blockchain, best known for its use in bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, has been embraced by financial firms for its potential to streamline processes and improve efficiency. Santander estimates that blockchain will cut costs by $20 billion a year by 2022.

This is because blockchain, as a distributed ledger, allows multiple parties to transfer and store sensitive data in one space, and it has the characteristics of security, permanence, anonymity, etc. This simplifies cumbersome and expensive financial systems such as remittances and cross-border transactions, securities trading, etc. In addition to the financial market, governments and the music industry are also investigating the potential of blockchain technology.

Therefore, venture capital firms and financial institutions are investing a lot of resources to develop or test blockchain applications. So far, more than 50 large financial institutions have reached cooperation with blockchain startups to study this technology within the institutions or assist these startups in developing blockchain products.

Jaime Toplin, a research associate at Business Insider's BI Intelligence division, has written a detailed report on blockchain technology, explaining how it works and why it has the potential to disrupt the financial industry.

Here are some key takeaways from the report:

1. Aite Group predicts that spending on the blockchain market will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 52% , reaching 4亿美元by 2019.

2. Banks and major financial institutions are collaborating or independently developing blockchain technology, and more than 50 major financial institutions have reached cooperation with blockchain startups (such as R3CEV or Chain).

3. Applying blockchain to real-world transactions may not be far away. If the relevant research working group's tests are successful, companies can use blockchain to process real value transactions as early as the end of this year, and in the next few years, we may see widespread industry applications.