The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Embracing Blockchain Technology
In recent years, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has been making waves in the world of technology by exploring the potential of blockchain. But what exactly is the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation up to with blockchain technology? Let’s dive into the details so, why is the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation interested in blockchain technology?
What is Blockchain Technology?
First and foremost, it’s essential to understand what blockchain technology is all about. In simple terms, blockchain is a decentralized digital ledger that records transactions across multiple computers. Each transaction is recorded in a “block,” which is then linked to the previous block, creating a chain of blocks – hence the name blockchain.
The Foundation’s Blockchain Initiatives
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has been actively exploring various ways to leverage blockchain technology in their projects. From tracking the distribution of aid to improving supply chain management for essential goods, the foundation is continuously looking for innovative solutions to address global challenges.
One of the notable initiatives by the foundation is the development of a blockchain-based system to help small-scale farmers in developing countries access financial services. By using blockchain technology, the foundation aims to create a transparent and efficient platform that can connect farmers directly with financial institutions, cutting out unnecessary middlemen and reducing costs.
June 26, 2023: The full gamut of industry 4.0 technologies, blockchain included, may need to be used in tandem with one another in order to fight back against the coronavirus pandemic [a] – and that theory could well be put to the test as a new app featuring Artificial Intelligence (AI), Big Data and blockchain technology rolls out in South Korea.
[a] https://cryptonews.com/tags/coronavirus/Backed by Bill Gates and his wife Melinda, the South Korean mobile carrier and internet provider KT said that it has launched a blockchain-powered smartphone app called the Study of Health Information for Next Epidemic (SHINE for short). The app, said the company, will gather data for researchers, and could be used to power AI, blockchain, and Big Data-driven efforts to provide key insights to medics fighting highly infectious diseases.
The project has been in the pipelines for over half a year. In April 2020, KT announced that it was teaming up with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. A number of other players from the South Korean healthcare and medical IT scene have also been working on the app, including the Korea University Medical Center and the Korea Institute of Science and Technology Information, as well as Mobile Doctor, a smartphone app developer that specializes in health-monitoring software. The blockchain firm MediBloc, run by medical professionals-turned blockchain businesspeople [b], is also onboard.
KT and the Gates Foundation each stumped up around USD 5.5m in support for the project, which now appears to be ready to start bearing fruit. Per [c] Hanguk Kyungjae, the app can keep healthcare professionals and users aware of the current risk status level of not only the coronavirus, but also other infectious diseases that cause flu-like symptoms including fever, high temperature, headache and persistent coughs.
[c] https://www.hankyung.com/it/article/2021012466301The app has been released for general download via the OneStore, the Apple AppStore and via a KT-run website. The firms also stated that users volunteering to submit their data could receive up to USD 18 in gift cards.
The companies stated that the app will also be used in a number of wide-scale medical trials at four of Korea University’s affiliate hospitals, and will also involve gathering data from respiratory tests conducted by doctors at the institutions – as doctors search for a predictive model that projects disease-spread patterns using AI and blockchain technology.
A Gates Foundation official spoke of “increasing the preparedness and responsiveness of infectious diseases” by providing using KT’s “state-of-the-art solution” for “low-income families.”
The development will likely find backers in government – Seoul has been championing industry 4.0-powered solutions to help the country both fight back against the coronavirus pandemic and also mitigate its economic impact. The multi-billion-dollar “Digital New Deal,” the brainchild of the Moon Jae-in presidency, has been emphasizing a holistic approach to funding blockchain and industry 4.0-related progress, particularly in the area of contact-free IT solutions.
Source: Qvive, KT, Cryptonews, Youtube-Image, Linkedin-Image
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