It’s not always that you hear about automakers looking to the blockchain for inspiration. That’s about to change as Toyota partners with MIT Media lab and five other companies to use blockchaing technology for self-driving cars.
According to a series of news reports, the project would allow consumers and businesses to exchange data in a secure fashion so that manufacturers would be able to learn from the driving and the consumer’s experience. This exchange would also help autonomous car owners to set insurance rates.
If the system works out as planned, the database would use blockchain technology. For those who do not know what that means, blockchain is a public online ledger of transactions that has been used by digital currency users over the years. As more companies begin to employ more technology power to their new cars, they create new business opportunities for systems such as blockchain.
With the help of a series of companies, Toyota will be able to develop a system that will help both them and consumers as we transition into the self-driving car world. But until this technology is developed, it’s still too early to identify whether this type of technology will produce the results that Toyota hopes to obtain. Until then, we must keep in mind that the self-driving technology can help a great deal of people in the future, but it cannot help everyone all the time.
Until the system is well-developed and foolproof, drivers must keep in mind that focusing on the road ahead and being safe drivers is the only way to avoid accidents. Motorists must remember that when they are distracted, they are more likely to be involved in a crash simply because they are less likely to react accordingly in an emergency than a driver who’s focused.
And after all, cars won’t drive themselves! Motorists need to be responsible car accidents.
For more on Toyota and its new goal, follow this link.