Features
6 Jul 18

BMW, Ford, Renault and GM go Blockchain

‘Using blockchain and related technologies to make mobility safer, greener, and more affordable’, that is the mission of MOBI, Mobility Open Blockchain Initiative. 

MOBI wants to enhance various aspect of modern digitalised mobility demand by promoting the use of blockchain and related technologies. From carbon pricing, over car and ride sharing to location information and autonomous machine payments, the list of applications is endless.

To cover all these applications, MOBI is a consortium that involves a broad spectrum of players in the sector, from automakers over energy companies, insurance companies, and public transportation providers, to municipalities, car-parts manufacturers (Bosch and ZF), and the blockchain industry itself (Hyperledger, IOTA, and Consensys). 

70% are representatives of the car sector, which is strongly represented by the involvement of BMW, Ford, General Motors, and Renault. Their involvement turned MOBI into the biggest-ever consortium that focuses on applying blockchain tech in the automotive sector.

Setting Standards

The strength of MOBI’s mission is to create common standards and APIs, rather than a proprietary one, to enable payments and data-sharing between cars that cover all aspects of the new digital mobility ecosystem, from ride-sharing to self-driving vehicles. 

The creation of standards is necessary since the increase of digital applications in mobility. In order to make the mobility system work as a whole, it needs a ‘common’ language, which MOBI is willing to create. Blockchain might provide a uniform and controllable way to manage data which are collected and used by new, digitalized mobility forms. 

Moreover, Blockchain can prevent collected data to pile up in big tech companies. which is happening now by the Big Tech companies installing their data collectors in cars, such as Amazon’s Alexa, and Microsoft’s Azure. Blockchain can for example make the data ‘sovereign’, and owned by whoever generates it, being the owner, a fleet operator, or a city government.

Authored by: Fien Van den steen