- Blockchain - Home
- Blockchain - Introduction
- History of Blockchain
- Blockchain - Technology
- Blockchain and Cryptography
- Blockchain Beyond Crypto
- Blockchain - Advanced Concepts
- Blockchain - Decentralization
- Blockchain - D-Apps
- Blockchain - DeFi
- Blockchain - Future Scope
- Smart Contracts in Blockchain
- Blockchain - Ricardian Contracts
- Blockchain - Oracles
- Blockchain - DAO
- Bitcoin
- Bitcoin - Invisible Gold
- How Bitcoin Works?
- Bitcoin - Network
- Bitcoin - Wallets
- Bitcoin - Innovations
- Ethereum
- Ethereum Alternate Cryptocurrency
- Ethereum Ecosystem
- Ethereum Virtual Machine
- Advanced Ethereum
- Ethereum Wallets
- Ethereum Miner Nodes
- Miscellaneous
- Blockchain - Double Spending
- Public Key Cryptography
- Blockchain - Hashing
- Bitcoin - Mining
- Blockchain - Chaining Blocks
- Blockchain - Proof of Work
- Blockchain - Network & Mining
- Blockchain - Incentives to Miners
- Blockchain - Merkle Tree
- Blockchain - Payment Verification
- Blockchain - Resolving Conflicts
- Blockchain - Privacy
- Bitcoin - Mitigating Attacks
- Blockchain - Conclusion
Future Scope of Blockchain Technology
The landscape of blockchain technology is evolving swiftly, and its influence on our daily business operations will persist as new advancements arise. This innovation has disrupted traditional business models and offers significant advantages, including cost reduction, enhanced efficiency, and increased transparency.
We have delved into the foundational aspects of blockchain technology, examining elements such as cryptography, consensus algorithms, and the principles of distributed systems. Our exploration has included cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum, along with the development of smart contracts and decentralized applications (DApps).
Moving forward, we will investigate the most recent advancements, emerging trends, challenges, and future forecasts concerning blockchain technology. Additionally, we will address various topics related to ongoing research challenges and potential enhancements in the blockchain domain.
Emerging Trends of Blockchain
The realm of blockchain technology is experiencing a major shift and rapid progress, fueled by strong interest from both academic and business sectors. As the technology matures, several key trends are emerging.
One prominent trend is the growing emphasis on private blockchains, which have garnered significant interest for their customized applications in financial institutions.
Moreover, enterprise blockchains are being designed to provide solutions that meet the efficiency, security, and integration requirements of large organizations.
New Ideas of Blockchain
Since the advent of Bitcoin, there has been a swift emergence of new blockchains. Below, we will outline some of the latest trends −
Application-Specific Blockchains
There is a noticeable trend towards the development of application-specific blockchains (ASBCs). These blockchains are either custom-built or utilize existing blockchain platforms, tailored for a singular application and aimed at a particular industry.
For instance, Everledger is a blockchain solution designed specifically to provide an immutable tracing history and audit trail for diamonds and other high-value assets.
Another example of an ASBC is the Digital Trade Chain (DTC), where a consortium of seven banks has come together to streamline the trade finance process by directly linking the parties involved in trade transactions.
Alternatives to Blockchains
As blockchain technology has evolved in recent years, researchers have begun exploring the potential for creating platforms that can offer the same guarantees and services as blockchains, but without relying on traditional blockchain structures.
This exploration has led to the creation of R3's Corda, which deviates from the typical blockchain model by not utilizing blocks to contain transactions. Instead, it operates on the principle of a state object that moves through the Corda network, adhering to the specific requirements and rules set by the network participants, thereby reflecting the most current state of the network.
Additionally, IOTA serves as another example; it is an IoT-focused distributed ledger that employs a Directed Acyclic Graph (DAG) known as Tangle, rather than a standard blockchain composed of sequential blocks.
Blockchain as a Service
As cloud platforms continue to mature, numerous companies have begun offering Blockchain as a Service (BaaS).
Notable examples include Microsoft's Azure, which offers the Ethereum blockchain as a service, and IBM's Cloud platform, featuring IBM's own blockchain service. This trend is anticipated to expand in the coming years, with an increasing number of companies likely to enter the BaaS market.
Additionally, Electronic Government as a Service (eGaaS), a specific variant of BaaS, delivers tailored blockchains designed for governance-related applications.
New Programming Languages
The emergence of new programming languages is gaining traction, particularly in the realm of smart contract development. Current initiatives are increasingly centered around domain-specific languages, such as Solidity for Ethereum and Pact for Kadena.
This marks the beginning of a trend, and it is anticipated that numerous additional languages will be created as technology continues to evolve.
Cryptoeconomics
The advent of blockchain technology has given rise to new research domains, particularly cryptoeconomics, which focuses on the protocols that regulate the decentralized digital economy.
As blockchain and cryptocurrency technologies evolve, so too does the body of research in this field. Vitalik Buterin has characterized cryptoeconomics as an interdisciplinary study that integrates mathematics, cryptography, economics, and game theory.
What the Future Holds of Blockchain?
The year 2019 marked a significant transition from theoretical Proof of Concept (PoC) phases to the establishment of actual blockchain environments. It was widely recognized as the year of enterprise blockchain, with expectations that numerous organizations would embark on comprehensive enterprise blockchain initiatives.
A notable instance of mainstream tokenization is found in Decentralized Finance (DeFi), which currently holds billions of dollars in value within its ecosystem. This technology is anticipated to expand further in the coming years.
The following forecasts are expected to materialize between 2020 and 2050 −
- The Internet of Things (IoT) will operate across various blockchains, leading to the emergence of a machine-to-machine (M2M) economy, encompassing energy devices, autonomous vehicles, and smart home appliances.
- Digital currencies issued by central banks will become commonplace, with their integration into daily transactions anticipated within the next two to five years.
- DeFi is expected to undergo regulation, becoming an integral part of standard financial operations, with hundreds of billions of dollars locked within its ecosystem.
- Medical records will be securely shared while maintaining patient confidentiality among different private blockchains managed by a consortium of healthcare providers.
- Elections and voting processes will be conducted transparently and securely through decentralized web applications that utilize blockchain technology as their foundation.
- Financial institutions will implement numerous private blockchains to facilitate data sharing among participants and to streamline internal operations.