Google developing blockchain tech: report

Google’s parent company Alphabet Inc. is reportedly developing its own blockchain for use by third parties.

Internet technology company Google is reportedly creating its own blockchain technology to underpin and differentiate its expanding cloud business, people familiar with the situation have told Bloomberg.

Blockchain or distributed ledger technology (DLT) is a digital register that records cryptocurrency transactions. It provides complete transparency and is secure because no-one can tamper with the transaction history. Without the blockchain, digital currencies like bitcoin, Ethereum and Ripple wouldn’t be possible.

Google’s parent company Alphabet Inc. is developing its own blockchain that third parties can use to record and authenticate transactions, according to one of Bloomberg’s sources. Google also plans to offer a white-label version of this distributed ledger that other companies can operate on their own servers, the source said.

Numerous members of Google’s infrastructure group, headed by Google cloud chief Diane Greene, have been allegedly exploring blockchain protocols recently, according to another individual familiar with the company.

“Like many new technologies, we have individuals in various teams exploring potential uses of blockchain but it’s way too early for us to speculate about any possible uses or plans,” a Bloomberg Google source said.

Earlier this week, Google’s senior vice president of ads and commerce Sridhar Ramaswamy told an audience at the Advertising Week Europe conference that the company has a “small team” researching the technology.

“This is a research topic, so I don’t have anything super-definitive to say… The core blockchain technology is not something that is super-scalable in terms of the sheer number of transactions it can run,” he said.

The global IT company has also reportedly been investing in a number of startups with blockchain proficiency.

Many innovative startups and financial institutions are already leveraging the blockchain for modernization. Global banks are aware that they need to evolve with changing times, and are utilizing blockchain technology.

Global messaging startup Telegram plans to launch its own unique blockchain platform and cryptocurrency.

In February, American courier delivery service FedEx revealed plans to integrate blockchain technology, joining the Blockchain in Transport Alliance (BiTA) to develop industry standards for transportation companies.

Last week, plans were announced to launch the Hedera Hashgraph Platform later this year as a new kind of decentralized ledger that operates in a multi-dimensional graph, rather than the linear form of the blockchain.

The pro-crypto legal landscape in Vermont recently enabled city hall in South Burlington to record its first real estate deed exclusively on the blockchain. The milestone was achieved via startup Propy’s pilot program.

Popular American coffeehouse chain Starbucks is mulling the idea of utilizing innovative blockchain technology to process future payments, as well as the possibility of developing its own native digital currency.

Atari, an early architect of arcade games and video game consoles, has decided to develop its own cryptocurrency, supported by a decentralized blockchain crypto-platform, for accessing digital entertainment.

Swiss multinational financial services company Credit Suisse and Dutch-based bank ING completed a live securities lending transaction valued at more than $30 million, settled using blockchain technology.

With drug counterfeiting and tampering in its crosshairs, DHL has begun testing blockchain technology to help the company ensure the pharmaceuticals it delivers are authentic, ethically sourced and in perfect condition.

India’s prime minister Narendra Modi has asserted that disruptive technologies, such as blockchain and the Internet of Things (IoT), are significant developments that require “rapid adaptation” in the workplace.

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