{"id":3549,"date":"2018-04-22T18:40:05","date_gmt":"2018-04-23T00:40:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wacaustin.org\/?p=3549"},"modified":"2018-04-23T08:36:47","modified_gmt":"2018-04-23T14:36:47","slug":"world-spins-blockchain-trust-and-the-global-economy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wacaustin.org\/wp2015\/world-spins-blockchain-trust-and-the-global-economy\/","title":{"rendered":"World Spins: Blockchain, Trust and the Global Economy"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Raye E. Ward, WAC Austin board member<\/em><\/p>\n

Pete Harris stopped by a session of the\u00a0World Spins<\/a>\u00a0to share his take on blockchain, the software technology generally overshadowed by its trendier spawn, bitcoin and the Bitcoin network.\u00a0Harris<\/a>, who bears a striking resemblance to Bilbo Baggins, has a relationship to hype similar to mine with spreadsheets. That is, he is clear and takes\u00a0 sticks to the facts as he sees them. Even so, it doesn\u2019t take long to recognize blockchain\u2019s promise. If it\u2019s possible to transact business based on a series of permanent (i.e. they can\u2019t be changed), transparent interactions, then our trust-starved world may have a chance of recovering its footing.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll have to wait and see\u201d\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Harris\u2019 blockchain CV dates from his Wall Street consulting days over a decade ago. These days, having sworn off airplanes, he spends much of his time with the Austin startup community where over 70 young\u00a0cryptocompanies<\/a>\u00a0are\u00a0 tackling data integrity issues where they find them \u2014 finance, healthcare, contracts.<\/p>\n

I watched a handful present at Harris\u2019 Monday night meetup. They ranged from\u00a0Po.et<\/a>, copyright\/intellectual property protection,\u00a0to\u00a0GovernanceChain<\/a>, an accounting network and\u00a0CityShare<\/a>, a digital shopping\/hospitality network for member cities. Among the more visible is\u00a0Wanchain<\/a>, a Chinese nonprofit that\u2019s figuring out to securely connect separate smart contracts, each with its own blockchain, a pivotal step in supporting a currency-agnostic global financial network. Interestingly, Wanchain\u2019s technology is developed in China; the company\u2019s U.S. headquarters is in Austin.<\/p>\n

One of the best parts of these presentations is listening to company execs say, \u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d and \u201cWe\u2019ll have to wait and see\u201d \u2014 something I hear very often.\u00a0 But I suppose that\u2019s the beauty of a working with a nascent technology.<\/p>\n

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The blockchain network: can it build trust?\u00a0 Photo by Gerd Altmann via Pixabay, courtesy of Forbes
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Privacy is implicit in the design<\/u><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Speaking of wait-and-see, someone asked about blockchain\u2019s impact on GDPR, the European Union\u2019s toughened privacy requirements known as the General Data Protection Rules. With the compliance deadline looming next month, that too is a wait-and-see. But since transactions are permanent, transparent and traceable, the blockchain ledger eliminates the need for centralized control. The integrity of the information is inherent in the software design.<\/p>\n

A peek at a mobile citizenry in a digital world\u00a0<\/u><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Today, 10% of the world\u2019s GDP is in block chain. But it\u2019s not all business. In the public sector, tiny Estonia has fashioned itself what the\u00a0New Yorker<\/em>\u00a0magazine labelled a\u00a0digital republic<\/a>. Its citizens are free to live and work wherever they please while continuing to vote, maintain their health, pay taxes using digital IDs.<\/p>\n

Curious? Here in Austin, check out the:<\/p>\n