The Specialization of IoT and the Internet of Transportation

A Platform for Decentralized Autonomous Vehicles

Photo by Aleksejs Bergmanis from Pexels https://www.pexels.com/photo/timelapse-photograph-681334/

Web 1.0

• In the beginning, the internet was just about information sharing. No more, no less. It was characterized by people uploading content which was then easily shared and accessed, hence the nickname the “information highway.”

Web 2.0

• This was what Web 1.0 eventually evolved into and is what many of us utilize today: Medium, Reddit, Twitter. Therefore, Web 2.0 consists not only of a network of information, but interactive platforms where you can post on someone’s Facebook profile or dynamically contribute collectively to a Wikipedia post.

Web 3.0

• This is the holy grail of the internet. It was first conceptualized as early as 1960 by Allan M. Collins, M. Ross Quillian, and Elizabeth F. Loftus and has had many different names: Semantic Web, Web 3.0, and the Decentralized Web. Most recently, it has taken on the name of the “Internet of Things.”

What is the Internet of Things?

It extends the network of hyperlinked human-readable web pages by inserting machine-readable metadata about pages and how they are related to each other. This enables automated agents to access the Web more intelligently and perform more tasks on behalf of users. — Collins, Loftus, and Quillian.

If Web 1.0 is defined by information, Web 2.0 by interaction, then Web 3.0 will be defined through machine automation. In other words, machines will perform more tasks while humans do less.

In one of my previous articles “Solution to IoT is Blockchain Security,” I introduced the topic of the Internet of Things (IoT) and explored what it might look like within the context of a person’s home.

“The IoT is every sci-fi nerd’s wet dream. It allows your home to automatically turn on as soon as you walk into your house. It also not only connects, but provides a communication platform for all electronically connected devices.” -Solution to IoT is Blockchain Security

Now as the Web 3.0 landscape has been developing over the past few years, one trend I’m starting to see is that various IoT platforms are becoming specialized.

For example, Hyundai Digital Asset Currency (HDAC) is focusing their IoT platform on home goods and services. From appliances, to T.V.’s, to even the internet, the HDAC IoT platform focuses on anything and everything that has to do with your home. However, the reason they’re doing this is to obtain consumer dependence on their products. In other words, you won’t be able to buy a T.V. from LG and hope that it works on the HDAC IoT platform.

But what if you wanted to apply the Internet of Things to transportation a.k.a. the Internet of Transportation?

Companies such as Google, Uber, and Lyft are already working on creating autonomous transportation networks. However, they are doing so privately. Robotics and drone companies have also followed suit in creating proprietary, closed, and non-inclusive network.

Though privatization is great for the company, it often stunts innovation which also limits progress. How rapid and connected would the growth be of the Internet of Transportation if these giant companies pulled their resources together? Well this is exactly what a new blockchain-based company is hoping to do.

Decentralized Autonomous Vehicles (DAV)

“The purpose of the DAV cryptocurrency is to incentivize a community-built autonomous vehicle infrastructure and build an autonomous vehicle platform that is commercially viable and essential for cooperation. “ -DAV Whitepaper

The DAV network is an open-source project that hopes to incentivize innovation and creativity by allowing contributors to control the direction and pace of development.

Their vision is that by providing a basic and simple protocol, IoT applications for cars/drones/trucks that are built on top of the DAV blockchain will inherently be tied together. In other words, all the products on the DAV network will be powered by AV tokens and follow a unified standard of protocol. And this has many advantages.

https://www.pexels.com/photo/action-air-aircraft-aviation-442587/

For example, NGO’s are utilizing drones to access hard to reach areas in developing countries. Whether it’s to survey the landscape, to transport supplies, or to deliver medicine, these drones have become an integral part of their mission. However, as Bradley Berman from DAV points out, NGO’s face two prevalent obstacles:

1. Lack of funding
2. Lack of a clear regulatory framework for ensuring legal and safe deployment of drones.

Now the typical solution to solving this problem would be for a company to build their own government compliant drones and then either license or sell these units to the NGO’s.

However, the DAV network would address this differently. As an open-source project, developers from various NGO’s can collaborate on top of the DAV network and share their work with one another thereby saving thousands in research. They can also ensure that their drones would be compliant with world governments.

In the past 2–3 years, the IoT landscape is has started to take shape largely through the research of giant tech corporations. In fact, I fully expect various companies to release an alpha or beta IoT platform within the next 3–5 years. But to be perfectly honest, we are already seeing shades of it with Amazon’s Echo.

Amazon Echo: This is a voice activated device that is connected to your Amazon account and can purchase orders on your behalf through voice commands. You can also control various appliances in your home through it.

Now one disadvantage of developing these IoT networks privately is that it makes cross-network compatibility impossible. This will only foster consumer dependence, higher price points for products, and will be an absolute nightmare to deal with when moving houses/offices/cars as your choices will be limited by your privatized IoT platform.

However, it is refreshing to see a blockchain based company with decentralized principles like like DAV spearheading the way for a more connected Web 3.0 in what may very well be the future of the Internet of Transportation.

Remember to give me claps to the left and share with your friends! Until next time, onwards and upwards. 😁

*This article was submitted to DAV’s bounty program