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IOTA Joins Ford, BMW, GM and Renault As Some of the Big Names to Connect with MOBI IOTA Joins Ford, BMW, GM and Renault As Some of the Big Names to Connect with MOBI
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IOTA Joins Ford, BMW, GM and Renault As Some of the Big Names to Connect with MOBI

IOTA Joins Ford, BMW, GM and Renault As Some of the Big Names to Connect with MOBI

Photo by Alessio Lin on Unsplash

On Tuesday at the Future Blockchain Summit in Dubai, it was announced that Ford, General Motors, BMW, and Renault were just some of the big names that have joined MOBI – the Mobility Open Blockchain Initiative. The consortium’s goals are to use blockchain technology to make mobility safer, greener and more affordable.

mobi
Mobi is a global consortium of forward-thinking vehicle manufacturers and consumer-facing mobility providers creating the operating system of the ‘matter net.’

MOBI is looking to explore the use of blockchain and distributed ledger technology for use in the development of a digital mobility ecosystem aiming to make transportation safer, more affordable, and more widely available.

As they are working with companies that account for over 70% of global vehicle production in regards to market share, it seems that they have a pretty good chance of making this happen.

Chris Ballinger, former CFO and director of Mobility Services at Toyota Research Institute,  has joined MOBI as chairman and CEO, with the aim of creating a “more open platform where users, owners, mobility service companies, and infrastructure providers can better control and monetize their assets, including their data.”

Chris Ballinger, Chief Executive Officer of MOBI:

“I’m excited that MOBI is coordinating this initiative to use blockchain technology to create a more open platform where users, owners, mobility service companies, and infrastructure providers can better control and monetize their assets, including their data,”

A Decentralized Mobility Ecosystem

MOBI and their partners want to ensure that they can create an ecosystem where businesses and consumers have security and sovereignty over their driving data, manage ride-share and car-share transactions, as well as store vehicle identity and usage information.

To do this, they will be able to use the power of blockchain technology helping to securely record vehicle ID numbers and collision histories and also creating more transparency in the supply chains, assembly lines and dealerships.

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To create this mobility ecosystem, they are inviting stakeholders from all sections of the mobility value chain.

Not just limited to the automaker giants, they are also working stakeholders from public transport and toll road providers, other forms of transportation, technology firms, academic institutions, startup innovators, regulatory bodies across the globe and blockchain firms such as IOTA.

There are many benefits of working in a consortium as opposed to trying to tackle a project like this alone. By working together MOBI, their partners can create transparency and trust among users, reduce the risk of fraud, and reduce frictions and transaction costs in mobility, such as fees or surcharges applied by third-parties.

IOTA will be collaborating with MOBI

Shortly after MOBI was announced, the IOTA  foundation released a statement saying that they were also joining the automotive consortium. The IOTA Foundation’s mission is to support the development and standardization of new distributed ledger technologies.

In a post on Medium, IOTA Foundation it is joining MOBI.

Dominik Schiener and David Sønstebø Co-founders, Co-Chairmen of the Board of Directors, IOTA Foundation:

“We are proud to be a member of the MOBI and partnering with other leading global companies to drive industry standards that unlock the potential of DLT for the mobility sector to establish a seamless, safe, and affordable mobility experience.”

The Initial Projects

To begin with, MOBI and their partners will focus on the following projects:

  • Vehicle identity, history, and data tracking
  • Supply chain tracking, transparency, and efficiency
  • Autonomous machine and vehicle payments
  • Secure mobile commerce
  • Data markets for autonomous and human driving
  • Car sharing and ride-hailing
  • Usage-based mobility pricing, and payments for vehicles, insurance, energy, congestion, pollution, and infrastructure.

MOBI looks to be a promising venture given that so many big names already on board. It will be interesting to see how the project develops and the impact that this will have on the automotive industry as a whole.

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