The blockchain IoT opportunity and challenges
In the era of frequent digitization and automation, the emerging technologies are starting to incorporate each other. IoT is identified as the main driver as well as enable of this revolution of creating the smart world. However, IoT is still facing certain challenges that must be addressed to manage the security of an increasing number of devices. Blockchain is a technology that imposes immense benefits such as advanced security and traceability. It can provide a good foundation for transaction-based applications and interactions that are mainly conducted by IoT. IoT-based applications are conducted with cloud computing, fog computing, and AI-like technologies. Thus, to address the security and traceability challenges for IoT applications, blockchain is being integrated with IoT. The hybridization of both technologies is named BIoT to deliver smart, secure, and traceable applications and transactions. This can be a new approach towards the storage and business management of data in the coming years.
How blockchain is adding value to IoT
Blockchain can incorporate trust in IoT data and transform business applications by sending data to the immutable blockchain ledger for added security and accountability. IoT devices are to send data to private blockchain networks and create tamper-resistant transactional records. Meanwhile, blockchain enables businesses to share and access IoT data without any need for central control. The IoT transactions can be verified to prevent disputes and build trust amongst all the permissioned network members.
Challenges related to Blockchain and IoT
Both the technologies jointly have immense benefits but also bring challenges for adoption. This hybridization may be unprecedented as both are sensible, and pragmatic. Artificial Intelligence for all processes focusses on centralization and the users must have faith in the central for having trusted business outcome. However, decentralizing of data, models, and analytics what are the key elements of AI is imperative to deliver trust and confidence; it can be met through blockchain. Blockchain is poised to enrich AI by building and bringing trust to its key elements.
Use cases of Blockchain and IoT
More than billions of smart devices are being connected using IoT. The expected proliferation of billions more places are at threshold of the transformation sweeping beyond the electronics industry. The advancements in IoT are enabling the capture of data to make data-driven decisions. Thus, an accurate data is important for making decisions and transactions based on data.
Blockchain and IoT can bring real trust in captured data and validate the identity of the data throughout the lifecycle with blockchain. It has potential to enhance the capabilities that rely on device identity protocol and each device can have its own public key and send encrypted challenge and response messages to the devices. Smart contracts are used to represent the business logics of blockchain based network. They play a pivotal role by ensuring automated coordination and authorization for the transactions.
Conclusion
In conclusion, blockchain is at nexus of technologies such as cloud, IoT, and AI and bringing trust that is lacking amongst the technologies. Unlike, traditional database, blockchain enables a set of diverse data administrators who cannot change or delete data accidentally. The data is secured in blocks using cryptographic ledgers. The hybridization of technologies is intended to bring trust in data and transactions at main.
