Tech ‘Jack of all Trades’ IBM makes blockchain relevant at the big tables

IBM, we shouldn’t forget, stands for International Business Machines, and will eventually make more sense as time passes by and as technological advancement is closer to reaching its predestined goal.

The company behind the first computer, cellphone, and smartphone altogether, is also the company behind enterprise-level distributed ledger technologies, or commonly known as blockchains.

And not just because they’re directly or indirectly involved in every major blockchain use-case, whether that’s cryptocurrency-related or not, but also because IBM is the company with the most blockchain-related patent filings worldwide. 

In fact, IBM’s patent filling rate, specifically in the blockchain technology and innovations sector, has tripled over the last couple of years, making IBM look like a giant, even when compared to international networking and telecommunication giants that are also playing a key role in the sector.

The standard tech-company was not resting behind Microsoft and Apple, who made it into our households, but it was focused on R&D as always. managing to upscale blockchain up to a whole new level, hence it could be trusted by governmental and enterprise-level organizations.

IBM’s joint venture with Travelport and BCD Travel

Traveling and accommodation business Travelport and BCD travel are working closely with IBM to develop a blockchain solution to upscale the hotel commission reconciliation process.

According to Travelport, this solution is tailored to offer transparency in the booking sector, by managing reconciliation by using a distributed ledger.

This will ensure accurate tracking and accounting for commission payments owed from hotel chains for services purchased by travelers via online booking agencies, as well as offer hotels clear and detailed information on each traveler’s booking status.

Trust Your Supplier (TYS) project

Prior to that, we got IBM’s blockchain-powered trust protocol designed for the supply-chain industry, which is just one of the many use-cases IBM has deployed for the ‘behind the scenes’ logistics sector.

Trust Your Supplier is a collaborative effort between IBM and Chainyard, and it involves industrial titans such as Vodafone, Cisco, Anheuser-Busch InBev, Nokia, GlaxoSmithKline, Schneider Electric and Lenovo according to IBM’s relevant press release.

IBM has previously worked with Walmart, where it offered its “made-possible-by-blockchain” solution for physical goods tracking. Most supply-chain related patents that utilize distributed ledger technologies are as well cited by IBM.

Jack of all trades

Just looking at IBM’s blockchain arsenal, one could say that it is indeed a “Jack of all trades”, covering anything from the food industry, global trade, and finance solutions, empowering instant cross-border payments, and identity protection – all the way to offering a platform that helps companies create their own blockchains suited to their respective business’ needs.

Yes, maybe you are a Z gen kid who doesn’t even know IBM, or you’re a Y gen internet guy who forgot all about it, but IBM didn’t have to be spammed in your face as Microsoft and Apple did during the past couple decades.

Instead, IBM’s logo can be found in car-manufacturing facilities, robot workers, bank cashiers, servers, drones, quantum computers and so many more things you just don’t see every day, at least if you’re not working for Mercedes or ING.

The company was always the first to be involved with revolutionary practices that come attached to technological advancement and industrial level-ups. From the traditional and quantum computer to the concept of the internet, IBM was there, and it is here now during the incubation of blockchain technology into modern society.

Essentially, all I am trying to say is that IBM should not be underestimated and passed under the carpet, as you would do with your typical “big tech company involved in blockchain”, as IBM’s involvement with anything tech-related is similar to King Mida’s touch. It eventually turns gold.

If you’re an internet-gen fella or gal you should get that IBM involved in blockchain, the technology that made bitcoin possible, pretty much means it is at least as big as the internet itself.

Read more about IBM’s blockchain presence in our previous articles:

• IBM, Deutsche Telekom, and Tata in Hedera Hashgraph’s Governing Council
• Is IBM’s New Blockchain-Powered Web-Browser the New Chrome?
• IBM Is Building the Future of the Supply Chain Industry Using Blockchain