Recently Snowden was awarded the Thomas Szasz Award from the Center for Independent Thought, which was presented to him by my boss John Stossel. During the call I was able to ask Snowden about Bitcoin and the need for anonymous digital payments.
Bitcoin played an important role in the 2013 Snowden leaks: the servers that Snowden used to transfer information to journalists were paid for using bitcoin, because he didn’t want those records connected to his name.
Snowden explained to me that Bitcoin is superior to credit cards, because it’s at least pseudonymous. But steps need to be taken to add privacy.
He once tweeted: “Bitcoin is great, but “if it’s not private, it’s not safe,”” and he said that Zcash’s privacy tech makes it the most interesting Bitcoin alternative.
I believe there are five powerful use cases for blockchain. These five use cases are unique, unique in that the value we get from using a blockchain clearly outweighs the drawbacks. So let’s dive into these five great use cases and find out why they’re so well matched for blockchain:
#1 – Non-fiat money, or a store of value coin. What does that mean? It means money that has been issued by people or groups, but not a country. Now, this of course was the very first use case for blockchain technology. I’m talking about Bitcoin. Why non-fiat up money? Because blockchain solves two critical elements when it comes to making money useful. Blockchain makes counterfeiting impossible. It allows money or a store value coin to be safely transferred to anyone on earth with access to the internet.
#2 – A storage place for your personal identity. Now, this is a fantastic use case for blockchain. There is no safer way to store, and to give limited access to, all the personal identifying details of who you are. Your passwords, your driver’s license, all of your personal contact information, the information websites demand you hand over every time you want to sign up for an online service. If you could store your personal identifying details in a blockchain, all that precious information that identity thieves would love to get, we would all be better off. No one could touch it unless you gave them permission. Your digital identity would be safely locked in the blockchain, not on hundreds of unsecured web servers. And you would grant companies access to that information on your terms.
#3 – Supply chain. The ability of a blockchain to maintain an unbroken and easily accessible record of every event in a global supply chain is powerful. This, by the way, is the reason that supply chains are one of the first commercial applications of blockchain technology.
#4 – The tokenization of real-world assets. Now I’m talking about creating a digital twin of any real-world item. Why is this valuable? Because it allows you to transform nearly everything you own into provably, authentic digital certificates. Digital certificates that can’t be duplicated or forged. Blockchain is the way we begin to separate ownership from physical possession for lots of things. Tokenization will have a major impact on the way we shop, use, and trade things in the future. Now this particular use case is near and dear to me and that’s because six years ago, I used a blockchain to tokenize the US dollar. My partners and I created a way to send US dollars through the blockchain and it turned out to be a fantastic use case that harnessed the special properties of blockchain technology. And that tokenized dollar we created, what we named Tether, today trades over 4 trillion dollars annually.
#5 – Consumer entertainment, and it should start with video games. The global video game industry makes $150 billion per year and most of that revenue comes from selling virtual items, avatars, and skins to decorate your characters. Selling virtual assets is a great business model for video game companies, but it’s not so great for players. People spend hundreds, even thousands of dollars to collect their favorite virtual items, yet they never own them. Game companies rarely allow players to trade or resell all this digital property, property the players paid for! Now, if these virtual items were created on a blockchain, it would make it possible for hundreds of millions of video game players to directly own and trade them. I also believe it would unleash a massive increase in the willingness of players to buy more virtual items.
Why? Because by allowing the digital items to be resold, it makes players much more comfortable buying them in the first place. Just like the fact that you can resell your car puts you more at ease buying it because you can extract some value from the car when it’s time to trade up to a new one. And remember we’re talking about 150 billion dollar industry, just waiting to be transformed by the blockchain.
Arwen Smit discusses the importance of private and personal data and the loss of identity via impermanent institutions. She outlines how our identity needs to be individually controlled, as a basis of democracy.
She outlines why we need a new way to reclaim our identities and offers blockchain-based identity as a solution that can help us pave the way for a more equitable form of democracy.
The central idea is that we, as individuals, should control our personal data. What we can do with blockchain is control a repository of personal data silos so that we determine who gets what data.
For example, if a hotel only need to know if we are older than 18, they can verify that instantly via blockchain, without also accessing other personal information that is unrelated to their requirements.
If you live in an environment where the government or data institutions collapse, with blockchain you can still have your personal data and identity intact.
Arwen Smit founded several blockchain companies, including DOVU and MintBit. She believes that decentralised technologies will be the foundation of new economic and political models. She writes and speaks about blockchain internationally, is an advisor to Tomorrow’s Journey, and mentor to female entrepreneurs at Rotterdam School of Management, London Business School and Berkeley University.
This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx
Privacy expert, Steve Shillingford, speaks about privacy and blockchain at TEDx Salt Lake City.
Shillingford notes that the web has evolved from a decentralized platform to a tool controlled by a few corporate and government interests.
He further expresses that he knows this because he helped create the technology to accomplish that.
Following are additional notes from his talk.
Our digital world does not square with our analog experience. Almost everything we do without our phones is our analog experience.
The intrusive and unsafe digital world has left us feeling unsure and uncertain.
According to a PEW study, 93% have agree they have lost control of their personal identify. 9 out of 10 expressed lack of confidence in govt and private institutions.
But we can bring back the original intent of the internet.
Unlike anytime in history, people are becoming aware of these violations and are starting to take actions. One way is by reducing use of social media.
For some people cutting out the intermediary is a movement.
Hence, blockchain is shifting the power back to people.
We can decide what information of ours is accessed, shared and stored, without middlemen or caretakers.
With blockchain, entries can not be modified or changed without the author’s consent.
Blockchain puts freedom, trust and privacy back in the hands of the people.
In the offline world we have control of our personal safety, at least by determining where we go. With blockchain, we can take control back from powerful companies and big governments.
Blockchain gives us the power to live online, the way we live offline.
Blockchain will provide a safer and more connected world.
Steve Shillingford is an entrepreneur, technologist, and cybersecurity expert.” Steve Shillingford is an entrepreneur, technologist and cyber security expert. He is Founder and CEO of Anonyome Labs, maker of MySudo. A reformed data miner, Steve is a staunch consumer privacy advocate with more than 25 years of experience driving innovation and growth at industry-leading technology companies.
