Blockchain Technology – Transforming the Big Data Landscape

As “blockchain technology” continues to accelerate and becomes smarter, we are entering what experts refer to as the fourth digital revolution. Blockchain has emerged as one of the leading technology trends in the industry. Let’s dive in to understand blockchain better.

Blockchain Basics

Blockchain was developed in 2008 by Satoshi Nakamoto, a pseudonym used as a core component of the digital currency, “bitcoin.” Blockchain is simply a distributed and a write-once-read-only record of digital events in a chronological order that is shared in a peer-to-peer network.

Because it’s a simple technology, experts are eager to use it to replace more complex technologies in different sectors. It is more than a trend in 2018. Fortune 500 high tech companies Microsoft, Oracle, and IBM introduced cloud-based blockchain services, and they have collaborated with providers to seek more business opportunities in the blockchain arena.

Top blockchain trends to watch in 2018: 

Blockchain and the Internet of Things (IoT)

Blockchain technology can be applied to more than finance applications. The introduction of Ethereum has completely changed that perception due to the creation of a smart contact framework. Many experts believe that blockchain technology holds the key to the successful implementation of IoT.

The Internet of Things (IoT) is all about inter-connecting devices, vehicles, and even buildings (M2M). Stakeholders in the IoT development sphere are exploring potential applications of blockchain to the IoT model. Current enterprise security protocols can’t handle the demands of IoT due to issues stemming from the scale and the distributed nature of data points.

Blockchain and Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Artificial Intelligence (AI) emphasizes the creation of intelligent machines that work and react like humans. When you introduce blockchain to the AI equation, you know it’s going to be something to watch. Because blockchain technology can be integrated with AI implementations, the issues in theexchange of big data that currently exists in AI can be resolved cost effectively. Furthermore, blockchain provides a more secure platform that connects big data owners and AI developers. As a result, smart devices can take advantage of the system and apply AI innovations.

Blockchain in healthcare

In healthcare, critical information is scattered across multiple systems and often challenging to access. The current healthcare infrastructure is inadequate to the challenge of handling information exchange. Blockchain provides the “innovation trigger” and is just at the “peak of inflated expectations,” according to a recent Gartner Hype Cycle, and it could be integral in transforming how we view healthcare and data together. Blockchain’s potential for healthcare, however, depends on the willingness and capabilities of healthcare organizations in creating the required technical infrastructure.

Because blockchain is costly, there are some concerns regarding its integration with existing technology platforms, and there certainly is speculation about its cultural adoption. Blockchain requires significant investments, but with equally significant benefits. It is no surprise that blockchain is poised to be one of the key pillars in transforming the big data landscape.