South Korea plans to provide digital identities encrypted by blockchain with smartphones to citizens in 2024 to facilitate its economic development., Bloomberg reported Monday.

The South Korean government stated that with the expansion of the digital economy, the ID embedded in the smartphone is an indispensable emerging technology to support the development of data. 

Through digital identities on the blockchain, the network verification process will be simplified, and users can log in without taking a certificate or a verification code sent by text.

Widespread use based on digital IDs will be expected to increase government efficiency by saving more administrative workforce and time, reducing wage fraud, expanding consumer credit, facilitating trade, and generating new markets.

Alternatively,  other applications of digital IDs include: facilitating online medical services; hotel check-in using a smartphone; prevention of ID forgery and theft; remote approval of contracts; fast boarding, etc.

McKinsey & Company believes introducing digital IDs could boost a country’s gross domestic product (GDP) by as much as 13% and reduce business costs by trillions of dollars.

Citing Hwang Seogwon, an economist at the Korea Institute for Science and Technology Policy, stressed the importance of risk assessment:

“Digitals IDs can yield huge economic benefits in finance, healthcare, taxes, transportation and other areas and may catch on quickly among the Korean population.”

Continue reading… “South Korea to Provide Blockchain-based Digital Identities to Citizens by 2024”

Members of the Starbucks Rewards loyalty program will soon be able to earn and buy digital stamps to collect, then buy and sell them in a marketplace with other members of the program. This new feature was announced Monday morning.

This is the coffee giant’s long-awaited move into the field known as Web3. It is called Starbucks Odyssey. The stamps will not be exchangeable. The company’s digital marketplace will use blockchain technology to verify each token and keep track of who owns it as it changes hands.

Starbucks says that the Odyssey stamps will give you access to benefits and experiences. The value of each stamp’s points will depend on how rare it is. The company gave examples like getting access to limited-edition items, being invited to a virtual class on how to make an espresso martini, or going to the Starbucks Hacienda Alsacia farm in Costa Rica.

Since Starbucks joined the NFT craze more than a year after it was at its peak, it might be easy to think of them as late to the party. But Brady Brewer, Starbucks’ chief marketing officer, says that the company thinks it will do better if it is “strategically patient” and thinks about how it does things.

“As many brands just jumped right in, we saw a longer-term potential for this technology rather than a one-off,” Brewer said in an interview in advance of the Odyssey announcement. “We were thinking, how can it augment not just our customer experience but our core business, rather than something that would be on the side.”

Continue reading… “Starbucks gets on Web3: the plans of a coffee giant to utilize NFTs and blockchain in its rewards program”

The EUIPO plans to have a working system by the end of 2023 and will create a registry system for recording all of the IP holders, logistics operations and retailers.

By BYRITU LAVANIA

The European Union has announced that it is working on a Blockchain and NFT-based system to fight forgery of physical goods.

The proposed system will be designed by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), and will be an output of more than five years of hard work. As per an issued document, the EU has already selected a top-tier framework for this project, and the document also gives general details about how the system will work.

Intellectual property (IP) holders will develop twin NFTs as a proof that a group of produced goods are authentic. 

As per the outline, these IP holders must be previously included as ‘approved signatories’ to build the goods on the tracking blockchain.

After transporting products through different checkpoints and a successful supply chain tracking, the solution will let IP holders be sure that the products reaching stores are authentic.

Continue reading… “European Union to use Blockchain & NFTs to Fight Forgery”

By Montse Guardia

For a few years, technology has allowed us to exchange languages. We can travel safely, despite our ignorance of multiple languages ​​that is because we have the necessary support in our pocket. At the same time, we can learn these languages ​​regardless of where we are thanks to studying them with native speakers through mobile applications. 

We are prepared to create tools that allow us to tele-communicate between different cultures, growing in knowledge and wisdom, beyond our knowledge of the vocabulary, grammar, and expressions of a language. 

We are in the century in which we teach communication to machines, in which we get machines to express themselves naturally even in non-verbal communication. We are shepa.ai, we are prepared to learn, disseminate and deepen AI. But George Bernard Shaw told us that “the biggest problem of communication is the illusion that it has taken place”, we are in an era in which words are quickly labels to which we associate not only concepts, but also ideas and opinions and confusion. 

Continue reading… “Technological convergence: Blockchain and Artificial Intelligence”

Decentralized insurance built on a transparent, blazingly fast, and efficient blockchain with the community in mind is something to think about, says Adam Hofmann, the CEO of Nimble.

Let’s face it – crypto, Web3, blockchain, whatever you want to call it – is growing fast. As a result, there are concerns and skepticism around the volatility and safety of digital assets, including investor funds. Would you put your hard-earned money into anything without some sense of safety and security?

If we are going to be honest with each other, and we certainly should be, it is absolutely logical that companies are skeptical to put big money into a decentralized system.

In both the fast-evolving DeFi space and the “Normalverse,” there is always the risk of hacks or exploits. Enter: decentralized insurance.

“There have been innumerable cases of smart-contracts hacking, cyber-attacks on exchange platforms etc. that have caused huge loss of investor funds,” Blockchain Simplified states on Medium. “Even the magnanimous DAO could not prevent a malware attack on its platform that resulted in loss of billions. Decentralized Insurance has plenty of use-cases that can help prevent such consequences from occurring.”

Continue reading… “Decentralized Insurance Built on the Blockchain is a Game Changer”

Blockchain and drones: How will we control the new highways of the skies above us as small aircraft fill the the space above our cities?

By Nicole Buckler 

Blockchain is a new industry. And yet, there are systems being conceived around it that are even newer. And this concept is one of them. For those of us with kids, we are being told to prepare them for jobs that don’t exist yet. So read on.

It has been predicted that within a couple of years, drones will be above us all the time. They will operate in a sub-layer of the sky, below commercial flight paths and military jets. But their flight paths will need to be coordinated. This is so they don’t smash into each other while delivering cargo, ferrying people, and inspecting things like wind turbines and bridges. No one needs to be rained on by smashing drones, thanks.

A sub-layer of air traffic control has been conceived to address this. It will work using both distributed ledger tech (DLT), blockchain, and automation. Research around this new sub-layer in the aviation industry is already well underway. The idea is to improve safety, cybersecurity and interoperability.

Continue reading… “Blockchain Will Coordinate Airspace so Delivery Drones Don’t Crash”

Blockchain and drones: How will we control the new highways of the skies above us as small aircraft fill the the space above our cities?

By Nicole Buckler

Blockchain is a new industry. And yet, there are systems being conceived around it that are even newer. And this concept is one of them. For those of us with kids, we are being told to prepare them for jobs that don’t exist yet. So read on.

It has been predicted that within a couple of years, drones will be above us all the time. They will operate in a sub-layer of the sky, below commercial flight paths and military jets. But their flight paths will need to be coordinated. This is so they don’t smash into each other while delivering cargo, ferrying people, and inspecting things like wind turbines and bridges. No one needs to be rained on by smashing drones, thanks.

A sub-layer of air traffic control has been conceived to address this. It will work using both distributed ledger tech (DLT), blockchain, and automation. Research around this new sub-layer in the aviation industry is already well underway. The idea is to improve safety, cybersecurity and interoperability.

Cranfield researchers are part of this project. They say the system will integrate an ecosystem of crewed and uncrewed aircraft in the UK’s skies.

Continue reading… “Blockchain Will Coordinate Airspace so Delivery Drones Don’t Crash”

We find out over ‘glow in the dark dishes’ and sustainable eating

by Purva Grover

There are still a few of us who are wondering what are NFTs? These are non-fungible tokens, a unique digital file that’s stored on a blockchain network. Let’s dig deeper for clarity, shall we? Fungibility is an item that can be replaced by another identical one, and if something is non-fungible there is nothing with the same characteristics that can replace it. And NFTs are the buzzword, globally, and locally of course, with creators of all kinds exploring the ‘it’ thing. Interestingly, now NFT has entered the culinary world too. We find out.

Continue reading… “From burrata to blockchain: How food and NFT are related”

Cypherium is the only blockchain company featured in the FedNow Service Provider Showcase for now, the CEO told Cointelegraph.

By HELEN PARTZ 

The United States Federal Reserve Banks are moving forward with a real-time payment project, the FedNow Service, allowing service providers to present their instant payment solutions, including those based on blockchain technology.

On Tuesday, the Fed officially launched the FedNow Service Provider Showcase, aiming to provide financial institutions and users with a range of services to help them implement FedNow Service, which launches in 2023.

At launch, the showcase includes more than 70 profiles and service providers that support instant payments, including Cypherium, a New York-based blockchain company, focused on instant payment solutions, blockchain interoperability and central bank digital currencies (CBDC). The platform is known for being involved in Chinese blockchain projects, including cooperation with Suzhou City Municipal for the city’s development of blockchain Infrastructure.

Other providers in the showcase include services like BNY Mellon Immediate Payments, Mastercard Track Business Payment Service and ePayments.

Continue reading… “China’s blockchain ally joins Federal Reserve’s service provider showcase”

“QKD is the only solution that has been mathematically proven to defend against a potential quantum computing-based attack,” JPMorgan emphasized in its announcement. 

United States banking giant JPMorgan Chase has unveiled research on a quantum key distribution (QKD) blockchain network that is resistant to quantum computing attacks.

QKD utilizes quantum mechanics and cryptography to enable two parties to exchange secure data and detect and defend against third parties attempting to eavesdrop on the exchange. The technology is seen as a viable defense against potential blockchain hacks that could be conducted by quantum computers in the future. 

According to a Thursday announcement, JPMorgan collaborated with Toshiba and Ciena to deploy and test the QKD blockchain. 

“At this time, QKD is the only solution that has been mathematically proven to defend against a potential quantum computing-based attack, with security guarantees based on the laws of quantum physics,” the announcement read. 

Continue reading… “JPMORGAN UNVEILS RESEARCH ON QUANTUM RESISTANT BLOCKCHAIN NETWORK”

 

The Pacific island state, long keen to adopt blockchain technology, recognizes decentralized autonomous organizations

The Republic of the Marshall Islands has moved to formally recognize decentralized autonomous organizations, better known as DAOs, as legal entities — a move that gives collectively owned and managed blockchain projects formal recognition on the global stage. 

DAOs, which are blockchain-based entities governed by self-organizing communities, have attained legal recognition in the Marshall Islands after the country passed the amended Non-Profit Entities Act 2021. The amendment allowed cryptocurrency trading infrastructure platform Shipyard Software to incorporate the island country’s first DAO, Admiralty LLC. The incorporation was aided by MIDAO Directory Services Inc., a domestic organization that was established to help DAOs register within the Marshall Islands. 

As it currently stands, the new legislation allows any DAO to register and establish operations in the Marshall Islands. 

Continue reading… “MARSHALL ISLANDS OFFICIALLY RECOGNIZES DAOS AS LEGAL ENTITIES”