How U.S. companies and government agencies can capitalize on blockchain

Rage Comment : The United States never forgets to seek "world leadership" at any time and in any place, including military, economy, and technology. In fact, the United States has indeed always been the center of global technology development. The United States, the world's hegemon, will certainly not turn a deaf ear to the blockchain technology, which is called "disruptive" by various countries. Instead, it is planning to step into the blockchain technology center step by step, and both commercial activities and government initiatives are constantly upgrading around blockchain technology. At the beginning of this month alone, the U.S. Congress held several meetings around blockchain. From individual congressmen David Schweikert and R.-Arizona proposing that government departments carry out blockchain technology learning to U.S. congressmen holding digital currency and blockchain technology meetings, they gradually absorbed blockchain professional knowledge and suggestions. I believe that with the support of the national government, blockchain technology will develop rapidly in the United States. We also look forward to the United States, a global technology center, bringing new blockchain technology to the world.

Translation: Annie Xu

For months, the emerging technology blockchain has been shaking up the technology and financial services industries, and now other industries and government agencies are starting to take notice. I believe blockchain technology has the potential to not only transform the way trade is done, but also change the way governments, businesses, and individuals interact with each other.

So I was delighted when I was asked to give a technical presentation before the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce, Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade.

Members of the subcommittee called blockchain a “disruptive” technology and wanted to assess its potential to impact business, government, and the economy and hear my thoughts.

Apparently, they are right to call it a “disruptive” technology. It is transformative. Blockchain-based systems can drastically improve all industries, starting with banking and insurance. Whenever a valuable asset is transferred from one party to another, or you want to determine whether a piece of digital information from any institution is unique and immutable, without the permission of all parties, blockchain can help you do it in a different way.

There are four key points that anyone new to blockchain technology must understand, including government officials.

First, blockchain can establish trusted and efficient interactions.

Although blockchain is the core technology that runs Bitcoin, it can actually be used in very different areas.

It is a distributed ledger shared between peer-to-peer networks, with internal data storage space that can be expanded infinitely. Each participant has an exact copy of the ledger, and newly added data can be propagated throughout the network. Therefore, all participants have the latest ledger, recording the most recent transactions or modifications. Therefore, blockchain does not need to establish trust by other methods.

Second, blockchain technology must be improved to meet business needs.

This core technology needs to be improved to improve security and privacy protection. That is, blockchain that enterprises can use immediately. In addition, once blockchain technology is used to handle the core processes of an organization, the computer system and network construction method must meet the transaction volume requirements of governments and enterprises. And complete the task in seconds, not minutes.

Third, blockchain must be open and interoperable.

For blockchain to reach its full potential, it must be based on non-proprietary technical standards to ensure system compatibility and interoperability. Different blockchain builds must also use open source software, as well as loose licensing terms and strict regulation, rather than proprietary software that would suppress competitors. Only by ensuring openness can blockchain be widely used and innovation can flourish.

There are several different open source blockchain projects, but only the Linux Foundation-managed and endorsed project offers industry-friendly terms and multi-company governance, known as the Hyperledger Project. That’s why we joined Hyperledger and are urging others to adopt it.

Fourth, blockchain would benefit greatly from government involvement.

From the perspective of international competition, it is crucial for American companies and government agencies to lead the world in understanding and adopting blockchain. Because of the transparency of blockchain, government agencies can better understand the situation within the financial and commercial systems and detect and prevent potential problems early. Blockchain can also make interactions between governments and businesses more efficient, including taxation and land use.

Take the US social security system as an example. It involves the federal government, millions of employees, their payroll service providers, and 200 million beneficiaries and individuals who invest in the system. This is a scenario model for blockchain. The system management process involves multiple interests, various rules, and many steps, and it urgently needs high privacy protection and security.

Blockchain is the quintessential emerging technology. Its applications and benefits are numerous, but they are very different from the technologies that businesses and governments are accustomed to taking a "wait and see" approach to. We recognize that a prudent approach is prudent, but we also believe that if organizations do not quickly evaluate the potential of blockchain and begin testing it, the United States may be left behind in this global tectonic change.

Blockchain emerged from the shadows of the digital currency world, but now it has emerged into the open and is powerful enough to be used by business and society.