Canada’s legalization of cannabis opens up new opportunities for blockchain
You may have already heard about Canada’s landmark decision to legalize marijuana for recreational uses, which was legislated on Wednesday. Although the country has been making preparations for its legalization since 2015, there still remain unanswered questions as to how or whether the legal market will function. As with any new industry, there are new supply chain challenges. For example, those surrounding licensing and enforcing restrictions and cross-border policies. One of the top licensed cannabis producers has stated that there could be an immediate scarcity of supply after legalization, due to a labor shortage and other supply chain related issues.
Canadian firm DMG Blockchain Solutions has taken the opportunity to develop the world’s first blockchain powered global supply management platform for marijuana, to ensure that the marijuana being distributed is legally sourced and safe through traceability. By verifying and tracking products through the platform, companies will easily be able to prove that they are abiding by the regulations, as all responsible federal departments will also have access to the platform. This should help to manage and eliminate the existing black market. Managing cannabis logistics using a permissioned blockchain poses many benefits, particularly for governing bodies as it would prevent product flow from crossing borders illegally and breaching regulatory confinements.
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Rolls Royce partners with Intel to manage autonomous shipping data burden
Rolls Royce has already made its mark on the shipping industry this year with the development of its vessel battery power system. The company believes that the future of the maritime industry lies in autonomous shipping and that smart ships will be “as disruptive as the smartphone”. It has been developing autonomous shipping technology since the early 2010’s and hopes to launch its first unmanned coastal vessel by 2025.
To help make this vision a reality, it has decided to collaborate with chipmaker Intel to manage the immense amount of data generated by its Intelligence Awareness system – the foundation for its smart ships. Autonomous shipping data is much more complex and greater than that of autonomous road vehicles; the company estimates that up to 1 terabyte of data could be generated in one day. The deal with Intel will allow the company to use Intel’s 3D NAND solid-state drives to store network data and Intel’s Xeon chips to process it.
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Delta becomes Airbus’ first big customer for its data-tracking platform
In addition to implementing RFID tracking, Delta Air Lines will be the first major US airline to adopt Airbus’s cloud-based Skyline platform, Skywise. The platform will be used to track data across its airline operations and components, using predictive analytics to foresee potential mechanical or hardware malfunctions.
The Skywise system makes open-source performance and quality data on planes accessible to all the suppliers and carriers involved via the cloud. This data, combined with Skyline’s automatic maintenance scheduling system, will help the airline to run more efficiently as early detection and repairs mean that larger problems, delays and cancellations may be avoided. In turn, this should assist in lowering costs, to tackle the rising prices of jet fuel. Delta’s operating costs have already seen an 11.6% percent increase over the past few months. When maintenance needs are anticipated in advance, the overall downtime is also reduced.
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