Blockchain could well find use in the automotive sector and, more specifically, in the storage and recovery of data from connected cars. A French company, Blockchain Xdev, wants to develop a kind of "passport" for vehicles in the form of an NFT.
Collecting data from vehicles has become a strategic area for the entire automotive industry, as connected vehicles continue to become more widespread. A French company called Blockchain Xdev has had the idea of developing a kind of automotive "passport" that would record all data relating to a vehicle's life cycle directly on the blockchain. This offers a means to access a maximum of verifiable information on any vehicle in a fast-growing market. This will be useful for the purchase, daily use, resale, and even maintenance of vehicles. The French firm is supported by a whole consortium of automotive industry players in developing the project.
This project, in collaboration with the French Institute for Technological Research, SystemX, brings together Stellantis, Mobivia, Matmut, Crédit Agricole Assurances and now Covéa and Société Générale Assurances. This passport would take the form of a non-fungible token (NFT), representing all the characteristics of the connected vehicle. In concrete terms, Blockchain Xdev wants to create a kind of platform to issue the vehicle's NFT directly and to be able to manage the data. This could even represent a minor revolution for these digital tokens, often viewed as being more or less pointless, as the project represents an interesting industrial application of the technology.
A goldmine of data
The consortium includes a several insurance groups. This may seem surprising at first glance, but it's mainly because the data is a real goldmine for insurers, when it comes to analyzing the risks associated with a car. The sudden interest in NFTs to handle vehicle data may also be due to the risk of missing the opportunity to take the lead in the market by innovating in the field. The aim is to create a platform where each stakeholder could verify the data of a vehicle and be part of a sharing process between the different players in the sector. Each stakeholder could then draw on the available data in exchange for a fee. For car manufacturers, this could provide better visibility on the various repairs carried out on their vehicles, outside their official maintenance network.
This project of passports for connected cars could be launched in 2023 or 2024 at best, and could well put non-fungible tokens to use in a genuine industrial application.
