Just as the internet transformed the communication world as we know it, Blockchain is the fintech set to change the way that we record data.
Blockchain promises to simplify online transactions and deliver significant financial savings to the areas of banking, commerce, government, healthcare, academia and beyond. However, while tech giants like IBM, Google, and Amazon have begun to invest more into this technology in recent years, it’s remained frustratingly outside of the mainstream.
According to Gartner, a company known for its global research, only 1% of the 3,138 CIOs in the study said that they had invested in the usage or development of Blockchain. Fortunately, things may be about to change as we head into 2019.
Better Blockchain: Overcoming the Obstacles to Adoption
Until recently, there have been a number of issues responsible for preventing the mainstream adoption of Blockchain. However, the industry is quickly finding new ways to overcome those hurdles. In fact, according to the Technology Review, in 2019, Blockchain may start to become “mundane.”
For instance, one common hurdle was the lack of talent available in the market for companies wanting to invest in Blockchain. However, companies like IBM, as well as schools such as MIT and Oxford are beginning to introduce new Blockchain courses to bridge the skills gap. Additionally, companies can invest in coaching and mentorship to assist their employees.
Another issue was an inability to scale blockchain technology in a way that provided companies with full inner accessibility, without compromising on privacy or security. Fortunately, Zero-Knowledge proofs and the development of common command languages are beginning to reduce the issues in this space. The idea is that open source methods will eventually allow for compounding growth in the blockchain world.
Adoption Accelerates for Multiple Industries
As data becomes more essential in almost every space, various verticals are discovering the transformative effects of Blockchain for recording and managing transactions. According to MIT, the drive to take Blockchain mainstream this year is being facilitated mostly by major corporations like Walmart, which has recently begun testing a private system for tracking food supplies.
Another food supermarket in France called Carrefour has taken a similar approach to Blockchain, using the technology to track the safe supply of foods like eggs, chicken, and tomatoes as they move from farms to stores.
It isn’t just the food sector that has discovered a new passion for blockchain either. According to recent reports, the car manufacturing industry is also beginning to explore the possibilities of using blockchain for managing more secure and traceable transactions in modern vehicles. The auto sector believes that the improved transparency of information in blockchain can enhance supply chain management.
Smart Contracts Evolve for 2019
“Smart Contracts” are one of the primary pieces of technology responsible for driving the evolution of Blockchain this year. The arrival of the new “SciDev” protocol provides an intelligent approach for companies making smart contracts independent and compliant on the Ethereum platform. This gives users the option to access more secure complicated transactions.
The arrival of SciDex means that an even higher number of verticals will be able to start using Blockchain to exchange and secure their data. For instance, engineers, scientists, and budding business owners will be able to share information more securely online. Already, software companies like Nanome Inc. are experimenting with options that help engineers and scientists collaborate on transformative designs with blockchain technology at its core.
As well as supporting smart contracts, Blockchain also can further enhance the way that we deal with financial transactions too. The MIT technology review noted that financial institutions are beginning to explore the benefits of cryptocurrency, something that relies almost exclusively on blockchain technology.
The Future Looks Bright for Blockchain
As the world of technology continues to evolve, many experts believe that 2019 will be a “groundbreaking” year for the blockchain space. According to the founder and CEO of Overstock, Patrick Byrne, blockchain is bigger than “anything we’ve seen in history.” Byrne recently left the retail business to invest exclusively in blockchain.
Of course, there are still obstacles to overcome in the blockchain environment, but many investors believe that the roadblocks that are left for blockchain are no different to the ones that we initially faced when the internet emerged in the early 90s. Back then, people were struggling to understand how such complicated technology could find it’s way into the mainstream and look at how far we’ve come.
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