So far, blockchain is associated with cryptocurrency. When it comes to the evolution of the technology, this really is the sole application.
Granted, this is an enormous bucket, one that can completely change society. There is, however, the likelihood this will not be the only utility it serves. In fact, there could be some more fundamental use cases that actually alter society in a much larger way.
Before getting to that, we have to realize that technology has long tentacles. When you have something that is a piece of the foundation, such as blockchain, the areas it can penetrate are incredible. The thing with technology, no matter how we envision it, things evolve in a different manner.
Technology advances at its own pace. It also follows the principle of any complex organism. With so many participants, things unfold in ways most do not see coming.
Blockchain is no exception. So while most of the world focuses upon cryptocurrency, let's look at a few other use cases.
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Blockchain - Much More Than Just Crypto
We all know blockchain resides in the digital world. This is no secret. What is also a logical conclusion is the impact of this realm keeps growing. We are seeing the tentacles "of the Internet" expanding daily. Computing is flexing its muscles in a major way.
Many feel blockchain development is slow. There is a certain validity to this considering so much attention is upon cryptocurrency. At the same time, we also have to consider that fundamental development, i.e. infrastructure, is not exciting to the masses. The failure to see progress on the application end does not mean things are stalled.
That said, we have 3 use cases of which blockchain could have a major impact especially as it pertains to AI.
1. Security
Blockchains, in many instances, are build in the wild. They are created and released. This includes all flaws.
The concept of "break early and often" fits perfectly.
This creates an interesting concept. Many within the blockchain realm are developing while also keeping an eye on both safety and scaling. This is something that AI developers should keep in mind.
Blockchain systems have ways of correcting themselves. With different participants, many views are brought forward, along with experiments. Ultimately, the fork allows for "competing" ideas to be tested in parallel.
Something like UST and Luna blew up quickly. Since that time, many teams have worked on figuring out a better solution. That threat was isolated with the participating actors seeking to improve.
2. AI For Humans
What perspective is AI being built from?
This can be taken from the viewpoint of both humans and the companies. Who is going to benefit from this technology? In other words, who is being represented within the development?
We know the users was the last one that is thought about by mega-tech. Nowhere in the equation, for example, is the idea of privacy. The users are exploited by the platforms for their (companies) gain.
At the same time, the training of AI is according to the parameters set out by these companies. Blockchain could change this by offering applications that leverage these technologies in many different fields. Something such as health could be enhanced by utilizing blockchain applications tied to that data. The cryptographic technology could enhance what we are creating, providing better AI systems.
Since blockchain can represent such a wide cross-section of the global population, the results can better reflect our interests.
3. Governance
One of the most underutilized features of blockchain is governance. In fact, I would state that very little experimentation is taking place in this area so far.
That said, blockchain offers enormous opportunity for governance across all aspect of society. This could include shareholder votes, national elections, and even board seats on the local home owner's association.
How would this world for AI?
We could see this apply to the development where companies post to blockchain enough to prove they reached certain safety benchmarks. Right now, for example, OpenAi is doing whatever they want, and nobody is able to monitor what is taking place. We have to trust the company it is operating in a safe manner.
Another area could be in the direction of the AI systems. Here is where stakeholders could vote to determine the future path the development takes. Instead of a company making all the decisions, opening up the door for nefarious outcomes (either planned or accidental), the hive mind approach could be utilized.
Bonus: Ownership
This is going to be a tough one to implement, at least as it is structured now.
We see the present AI systems following a similar path as most of our business structures. These are nothing more than products of these major corporations. At least a few are being released as open source.
Nevertheless, with something this powerful, we can see how this could tilt things in a bad direction in relation to the financial/economic benefits.
Blockchain is a great ally in the transition to a new ownership. Here is where cryptocurrency can enter, albeit in a slightly different manner. Instead of being mostly a mechanism of speculation, this is means of distributing ownership. It would, naturally, tie into the governance mechanism mentioned above.
In fact, it is likely we see many AI systems integrated into blockchain networks. This might take place at the application level but if the platform is tokenized, there is a different structure emerging.
Essentially, this can be read in two ways: blockchain being used to supplement AI or it being the driver in the development of it.
For the moment, most AI systems are being built outside of blockchain. We are seeing traditional companies developing the technology, mostly in a closed fashion.
Blockchain can lead us down a different path. There are some major use cases for it tied to AI.