SUMMARY
Google has quietly released a blockchain-powered search engine
Facebook has acquired its first blockchain company
A survey showed that Chinese economists are divided over the future of blockchain
Consider the most famous tag in the fashion world. The one which starts with “Made In.”
Fast fashion takes a huge toll on the environment. One which is steadily mounting as average wardrobe sizes have quadrupled in the last century and fashion trends increase exponentially.
Due to this, it has become more important for customers to know for certain how and where their clothes are made. To address this doubt, Pune-based blockchain company Infinichains has created CREDIBLE to authenticate a garment’s journey right through its entire supply chain.
By just scanning a QR Code, customers can know exactly where the farmer buys the cotton seeds, to which farm it grows on, to who stitches the garment and all the other players who are part of the supply chain, Parth Patil, the CEO of Infinichains told Inc42.
Blockchain makes it easier to share a single source of data with multiple parties without the risk of tampering, Patil said, adding that the advantage of blockchain is that to replicate such a system with traditional enterprise software is much more expensive and not as efficient.
This week Infinichains raised $2.4 Mn (INR 17.07 Cr) in its Series A funding round from Ajanta Pharma founder Purushottam Agrawal.
The company said it aims to use the funds to invest in marketing and spread the company’s products abroad as a big chunk of the audience will be in the US and Europe.
Google Gets Into The Blockchain Biz
Google is now looking to enter the blockchain search business, Forbes reported on February 4.
In addition to loading datasets for all the transactions and metadata in eight cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin and ethereum, Google Cloud developer advocate Allen Day and his team of open source developers from around the world are launching a number of tools designed to do to blockchain, what Google search did to the internet, the Forbes report said.
Facebook Makes Its First Blockchain Acquisition
Facebook has reportedly made its first acquisition in the blockchain industry by acqui-hiring a-year-old blockchain startup Chainspace, according to a blockchain industry news website Chedder.
The company is a small blockchain startup founded by researchers from University College London, Chainspace is reportedly building a decentralized “smart contracts” system that could facilitate payments and other services through blockchain technology.
Chinese Economists Divided On Future Of Blockchain
China’s economics experts have reportedly failed to agree on the future of blockchain and digital currency, according to a survey from internet giant Tencent, cited by a Chinese local news outlet Jiemian on February 1. Participants were asked about the Chinese government’s monetary policy for 2019, as well as factors such as the yuan’s future volatility.
The results highlighted six areas of disagreement.
For example, roughly half — 51% — of respondents would support Beijing issuing a central bank digital currency (CBDC), a blockchain-based version of the yuan.
