The Blockchain and Web 3.0 will eliminate intermediaries in multiple fields. We have selected several industries, but the list is not exhaustive.
First of all, we would like to make a distinction between a public (decentralized) blockchain, which is a true disruptive innovation like the steam engine or the internet, and a private (centralized) blockchain, which is an incremental innovation (improving an existing system with a minor enhancement), such as upgrading from an iPhone 7 to an iPhone 8, for example.
This article discusses these two types of Blockchain.
Banking and payment:
Banks and payment systems will be (and already are) the first to be affected by the democratization of Blockchain.
Man has always ended up adopting the simplest and fastest solution, whether for transport or industry.
Thanks to blockchain, there is a new way to send money anywhere in the world via the internet and a mobile phone with negligible fees. It will only be a matter of time before established habits and lobbies adapt as well.
DeFi Decentralized finance will fundamentally revolutionize investment and place the user at the center. Banks will not disappear, but they will adapt and coexist.
Moreover, there are many banks that understand what blockchain can bring, and some of them are already investing in this technology.
IT Security:
Blockchain makes heavy use of cryptography, but it is also a set of tools and technologies assembled in an extraordinary way. This makes exchanges between individuals highly secure and impossible to modify and/or intercept. Once understood by the parties, this technology becomes a new vehicle of trust through which value, information, contracts, and much more can circulate.
Many sectors that require a large infrastructure to secure information can be transformed by blockchain. It provides high security (the best currently available) and therefore makes it possible to eliminate these trusted third parties, which are becoming obsolete.
The laws:
The legislative environment will have to be completely changed. Lawyers are going to have to learn to code! Laws will no longer be subject to certain people's interpretation, but will be well-defined rules. Obviously, this only concerns what is «programmable.« The human brain is still the best at analyzing a situation. As lawyer Simon de Chartentenay puts it so well, " Blockchain will not submit to the law, it will be the law« .
Insurances:
The insurance industry is vast and represents billions of euros. Blockchain offers a new way to establish trust between two parties. Thanks to the advent of smart contracts (contracts locked on a Blockchain), we would have certainty regarding a person's identity and could process certain requests in a completely automated way.
With this technology, we can, for example, pool money together in a common pot and be compensated in the event of a problem: no trusted third party is needed anymore.
On the other hand, there can be user votes to validate whether a person actually «deserves» to be compensated. This operation would significantly reduce intermediary costs.
Real estate:
Another big, high-potential market that is about to be completely transformed! Thanks to Blockchain, we can drastically reduce paperwork, fraud, tampering, and human error while guaranteeing flawless transparency.
Some projects are already working on the tokenization of buildings or apartments such as for example the project RealT.
In France, where the average cost of real estate transactions amounts to nearly 14 % of the property price, it is possible to reduce these costs to just 2 % of the property price (the rest being taxes). Savings also apply to platforms' structural and IT security costs.
Decentralized data storage solution:
Projects like Sia, Storj and Filecoin establish a decentralized storage network so that you never lose your data. Then, the underlying cryptography ensures that you are the only person who can read your data: it belongs solely to you, and not to Big Tech (Facebook, Google, Amazon, Apple, etc.). We can already do without these intermediaries, but to do so, we obviously still need to know about these alternatives.
The medical field:
Another field that will be revolutionized, even though it is lagging behind the modern world from a technical standpoint. As explained above, the arrival of a highly secure solution for storing sensitive medical data will bode very well for hospitals. Furthermore, eventually, you will be able to go from one hospital to another anywhere in the world and access to your records will be done in one click in a secure and confidential manner.
A project like Ocean Protocol for example, working on the creation of a confidential «veil» between medical databases and AIs that feed on data to enable true confidentiality of medical data.
Voting systems:
The 2017 US presidential elections raised many suspicions regarding computer security and vote counting.
In France, the very high abstention rate in the 2021 Regional and Departmental elections is problematic.
On the one hand, the voting system has not evolved with the times: electronic voting would generate much greater interest among young people in elections. But this system does not exist because we do not trust private and opaque voting devices and systems.
Creating a voting system on a public blockchain would easily bring everyone to agreement and allow for digital voting in a transparent manner, without any flaws or any possibility of cheating.
Some startups have already started working on these solutions: this would put an end to the opacity of voting systems, especially in certain countries.
As an example, we have the project Civicpower who is working on this new voting system.
Connected objects – Internet of Things (IoT):
Blockchain will enable the various connected objects to «talk» to each other securely, without leaking your data to «hackers» or even to GAFAM.
We could securely manage sensitive applications remotely, such as home energy management or home security systems. We have the project Iota as an example for this kind of solution.
10 – Charity and Donations:
Often when making a donation, the question is whether it will reach the right recipient. Blockchain will make it possible to track with 100 % certainty where the money is moving. No more possible scams, and donations that arrive directly at their destination.
11 – Energies:
If there is one centralized system, it is certainly in the field of energy! EDF and Veolia manage our electricity and water consumption in a centralized way as they see fit. Some start-ups are working so that we can exchange energy (electricity) between individuals on a peer-to-peer basis, without intermediaries, for example the project Energy.
Wouldn't you prefer to buy your energy directly from your neighbor, who has a surplus with all the solar panels they installed?
12 – Supply chain:
Blockchain offers flawless traceability and could make it possible to verify the authenticity of a designer bag, for example, or the complete history of the journey made by a simple fruit or vegetable.
We were able to see this tool being implemented with the company Carrefour for their products, click here to learn more.
13 – Carpooling, the hotel industry, and the automotive industry:
You surely know the carpooling giant Blablacar, the Uber platform, or the housing platform Airbnb? Well, Blockchain will put these companies in great danger. There are already applications that use Blockchain to eliminate these trusted intermediaries and guarantee people's identities and payments.
Here is an example of a platform that aims to dethrone Airbnb by offering a decentralized version on the blockchain: Dtravel.
Additionally, you will be able to pay for tolls, gas, and parking very easily. The giants Renault and the bank UBS are already on it. Renault wants to use blockchain to accurately track the maintenance log of the brand's cars. It will be very easy to check if a car meets standards or if it has undergone unauthorized modifications.
14 – Identity checks and the airline industry:
British Airways has already announced that it has started a project using Blockchain to more easily identify passengers. Having certain information on the Blockchain would facilitate the identification process in a quick and more secure manner. More security and saved time are indeed the world towards which we are heading.
Online music:
Blockchain can repair the damage caused by the centralization of platforms with the internet in the past. It is now possible to directly reward authors, creators, and composers without going through third-party platforms like Spotify. With each listen, a few cents of value are paid directly to the authors, creators, and composers via a blockchain.
Online shopping:
Currently, we rely on intermediary sites to make our online purchases. Once again, the Blockchain will connect the buyer and the seller in a simple way by eliminating the intermediary. You get a cheaper product and the seller sells their product with a higher margin: a win-win.
17 – Financing techniques and fundraising:
Sites like Indiegogo have had their day. Although they revolutionized their industry, their days are numbered. The ICO (Initial Coin Offering) craze in 2017 strongly revolutionized this industry. Companies are asking to receive funds in Ether instead of dollars. It's faster, it allows everyone to participate without any discrimination and in a completely transparent way. Many crypto projects have raised millions of dollars using this method.
18 – The certification:
Many highly promising projects aim to use the Blockchain to verify the validity of a degree and work experience, especially for major American universities that suffer from this type of fraud. The end of embellished resumes is near. We have the project BCdiploma as an example but also EvidenZ.
For identity certification so that we no longer need a password to identify ourselves during a doctor's visit or at the front door of our house, we have, for example, the French project Uniris.
All of these sectors have the potential to be revolutionized by this new technology, which does not mean things will happen overnight, however... There will be a lot of resistance from parties positioned as trusted third parties. But humans will always choose the most efficient solution over time.
We hope that Blockchain will be used intelligently to put the user back at the center and to decentralize many systems. The Internet could have allowed this, but it ultimately centralized systems.
It is up to users to choose the type of system they want. This choice will be made by using the many alternative and decentralized systems we discussed (or others) or by remaining in this paradigm of unnecessary trusted third parties whom we ultimately cannot trust.
Tristan
