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Blockchain is most commonly associated with cryptocurrencies. For those new to these technologies they are often interpreted as one in the same. However, once an individual digs a little deeper, the differences quickly become visible and a new world full of potential is revealed.

Blockchain creates opportunities through the continued development and building upon this technology. The decentralized origins through peer to peer authentications quickly evolved into smart contract layers and a variety of customizations like anonymous encryptions, faster computations, transfers and so much more. The strengths of blockchain are its ‘unbreakable’ encrypted transactions of processed data through networks of mining systems to complete a compression and seal the blocks. No, the blockchain is not really unbreakable but the processing power to decode a block basically makes it pointless to even attempt to decrypt it.

Despite this secure and increasingly complex technology, the blockchain is becoming unchained as it continues to grow by way of adapting and increasing its relevance to expand into new markets. Cryptocurrency projects are being built utilizing the various blockchain algorithms to solve real-world problems like international shipping, real estate transactions, renting, VIN and vehicle transparency, transaction fees, television and advertisements, crowdfunding, real privacy and anonymity, and then some. There are endless opportunities for blockchain to enter new industries. Many are discovering crypotechnologies to operate more like startups and venture capital than anonymous currencies for black market exchanges. Blockchain has slowly implemented itself into these industries and will gradually become an accepted and welcomed piece of technology because of its capabilities… but wait there’s more.

And then the tangle was born. Much debate is taking place regarding the tangle and it’s scalability with the IoT (Internet of Things). The tangle takes the peer to peer authentication systems blockchain was founded on and incorporates it into the users devices. Essentially, every data transaction request requires the user’s device to authenticate/verify two other actions on the network prior to submitting its request for verification. The benefits of the tangle is the system does not get bogged down like a blockchain as it continues to grow. Instead, with each transaction automatically verifying two others without condensing the data into a solidified block, this system is built for longevity. It is quicker, and more adaptable, with the same and some ways more possibilities than blockchain.

The Internet of Things has been growing rapidly in recent years with an estimated 8.4 billion devices connected to the network by the end of 2017 and that number is expected to reach 20.4 billion devices by 2020. The tangle is designed to integrate into the IoT utilizing these devices to authenticate the data transactions. This still happens in a secure and essentially faster manner than blockchain but with an additional ability to decentralize the authentication/mining efforts by way of redistributing the responsibility to each node that requested a data transaction.

The blockchain and the tangle are only continuing to grow. More people and industries are taking notice. It is difficult to determine at what stage these technologies will be fully embraced but we can only hope they remain in the hands of a peer to peer decentralized system without limitations. As these technologies adapt, even on minuscule levels, their capabilities and opportunities expand with it. We can’t forget to mention the teams of people and different industry experts coming together to advance the technology and enhance our lives by solving more problems in innovative ways. This is what makes the technology so important. Blockchain has truly become unchained and it will be difficult if not impossible to stop the advancement of this tech in the coming years.

About the Author:

Alexander has been interested in new and emerging technologies for years. Having only recently gone all in researching and understanding the blockchain and cryptocurrency world.