Startup SmartContract has developed technology to create and implement trust-based agreements that are driven by internet-based data to verify their compliance with pre-set rules. The company is working with NXT , developer of a crypto currency platform, as a proof of record by storing hashes of its agreements in the NXT block chain.

Using a web interface, users can create agreements that tap into specific data sources and follow rules, optionally making immediate or escrow payments in bitcoin when conditions are met. One example are contracts that pay out when certain performance metrics - such as SEO ranking for a website - are hit. Future support for smart property transfers, and for contracts driven by GPS location tracking are in the works.

SmartContract is headed by CEO Sergey Nazarov, who has worked with NXT on other smart contract projects, and also for a decentralized secure email service. Financial backing for the company comes from San Francisco-based Data Collective, which invests in big data companies, including those that also are part of the crypto space, such as TradeBlock.

In common with projects like Factom, SmartContract taps into block chain technology as its way of permanently and securely recording its contracts and the details that make them up. But while Factom uses bitcoin's block chain for its services, SmartContract has turned to a separate crypto currency platform called NXT.

According to its website, NXT - which was released at the end of 2013 - "is a radical enhanced crypto currency built from scratch, to deliver a unique and decentralized financial platform. Not only does it open up new possibilities – from digital money to transfer of shares – but it addresses all of the most serious deficiencies in existing cryptocurrencies."

While NXT has similarities to bitcoin - such as running on a block chain data structure - its code is not derived from the bitcoin source, unlike many altcoins. Instead it has been developed completely separately, written in Java for transportability. In particular, non-currency uses for NXT - so called 2.0 applications - are a part of its core design.

One significant difference between bitcoin and NXT is that NXT's method for confirming transactions - or acheiving consensus - is not based on a proof of work algorithm. Rather, it follows a proof of state model, where all NXT account holders can play a part in block creation. Typically, new blocks are created every 60 to 80 seconds. See this whitepaper for more information.

While the developer base for NXT is small - just a handful of people are actively involved in developing the core code - the emergence of applications like SmartContract could boost its popularity, or cause the bitcoin community to respond via developments such as sidechains to build in additional functionality.