The Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology’s (RMIT) Blockchain Innovation Hub has released a report proposing the implementation of pilot Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO), to assist specific precincts in Melbourne’s CBD in recovering from the impacts of the pandemic. The report, which is part of a five-piece series of reports funded by the Victorian Government, details how blockchain technology — specifically DAOs — can be used to help cities like Melbourne recover from a lack of economic activity during the pandemic and to survive into the future with the likely persistence of hybrid working arrangements. Created in consultation with the City …

Pubinno, a San Francisco-based technology firm that creates the "Internet of Beer" with artificial intelligence, robotics and cloud computing platforms, has now integrated Bitcoin (BTC) payment infrastructure into its system. Pubinno accepted BTC payments using the Lightning network at the #LightningHackdaysIST held from Feb. 25 to 27. By using their Lightning Network-supporting wallets, participants could receive their own beer poured just seconds after completing the transaction by scanning a QR code. According to Pubinno's Creative Director Volkan Dogan, the Smart Tap system was created in 2016 and employs blockchain technology to link the future of draft beer with the future …

Peter Thiel-backed city-building startup Praxis has raised $15 million in Series A funding from a variety of crypto venture firms led by Paradigm Capital, Sam Bankman-Fried's Alameda Research, and Three Arrows Capital. Dryden Brown of New York University, and Charlie Callinan of Boston College, co-founded Praxis, formerly Bluebook Cities in 2019, describing their goal as: “building the city-cryptostate to realize a more vital future,” according to the company website. Praxis wants to pivot away from “artificially scarce metaverses” to build a city-state that is organized around “shared values,” rather than the “labor market principles of the Industrial Age”. The cryptocurrency-run …

In a blog post published on Sunday, Ethereum (ETH) co-founder Vitalik Buterin voiced his support for utilizing the cryptocurrency phenomena to serve the interests of local governments and their citizens. Specifically, Buterin discussed the formation of city tokens and decentralized autonomous organizations, known as DAOs. DAOs are self-governing organizations where users draft and enforce rules themselves, such as voting on protocol amendments based on the amount of the underlying crypto tokens they hold. The idea is still in its infancy. Nevertheless, Buterin claimed that city tokens should satisfy at least three of the following five objectives: Act as a sustainable …

Smart cities are steadily garnering attention worldwide as they become points of aspiration for many jurisdictions. There is a very clear relationship in these urban utopias between the citizens for whom they are built and the systems, networks and devices that enable their safe, secure and efficient operation. Most importantly, they will be built on entirely new financial technology infrastructure that supports the flow of micropayments over financial “plumbing,” in a similar way that other essential utilities (water, energy, data, etc.) flow over pipes, cables and fiber. The principal aim of a smart city is to optimize city functions and …

You might have heard the term “smart city” before — a futuristic, utopian idea that we might see implemented in the foreseeable future. Indeed, some metropolises — like Singapore, Seoul, Amsterdam, Oslo and Tokyo — are already on their way to becoming “smart.” So, what makes a city smart? That label is still quite abstract and might entail different meanings, but if you go the boring route and actually Google it, you’ll come across this unified definition: an interconnected urban area that utilizes various sensors and other methods to collect data and use it to improve its operations. In other …

Synergy has long been an overused word in the business lexicon, but on occasion the fit between two companies or projects is so smooth that there’s no other word for it. Such is the case with the newly announced partnership between PlanetWatch, a firm that uses cryptocurrency rewards to deploy Internet of Things-connected (IoT) air sensor networks in cities, and EMRIT, a firm that uses cryptocurrency rewards to deploy IoT connectivity networks in cities. Under the terms of the agreement, EMRIT is going to fund the deployment of thousands of PlanetWatch-compliant air quality monitors which will be hosted together with …

Across Poland, an NFT developer’s SIM cards are turning mobile phones into a key that opens up the smart cities of tomorrow. Blockchain developer SmartKey’s Live Objects technology is using non-fungible tokens and the Internet of Things to create a smart technology network that can manage bike sharing systems, read electric meters, and even unlock doors for emergency services workers. Working with the major European mobile service provider Orange in 80 cities across Poland, Live Objects is building a Blockchain Internet of Things (BIoT) to become the infrastructure provider of choice for smart cities of the future. Far from being …

Akoin (AKN), the crypto project developed by Senegalese-American singer Akon, has completed the pilot rollout stage of its deployment in the Mwale Medical and Technology City complex in Kenya. As previously reported by Cointelegraph, the trial phase was launched back in November 2020 at the time of the AKN listing on the Bittrex crypto exchange. Following the success of the initial pilot, the Akoin crypto is now ready for full deployment in the $2 billion complex in July. Commenting on the success of the pilot program, Akoin President and co-founder Jon Karas revealed that the roll-out was received with “great …

Blockchain incubator and investment firm Blockchains LLC is stepping up its plans to build a smart city in the Nevada desert east of Reno. In an interview with the Associated Press released Saturday, Blockchains CEO Jeffrey Berns said he had asked the state of Nevada to let him form a local government on the 67,000 acres the firm owns in Storey County. If his petition is successful, the blockchain firm would be allowed to operate as an “innovation zone,” where a company would be able to impose taxes and create courts — in addition to incorporating digital currency payments for …

Akoin, the cryptocurrency project of American-Senegalese musician Akon is launching imminently in the $2 billion Mwale Medical Technology City, or MMTC, in western Kenya. As a newly built city centered around a state-of-the-art medical and technology complex, MMTC would seem to be the ideal proving ground for the currency, ahead of it becoming the official currency of Akon City, currently under development in Senegal. During the pilot stage, starting later this month, residents will be able to pay and be paid using Akoin, and instantly convert the currency into cell phone minutes or other forms of exchange. While the initial …

Data is incredibly valuable. But right now, it’s being underutilized — and few of us have control over our digital footprint. Here, CyberVein’s global marketing director Pavel Jakovlev explains the network’s vision for big data, its use cases, and how everyday consumers can monetize their personal information. 1. Put simply, what does CyberVein do? CyberVein, just like Google, is always in beta. We have incredible developers and strategists, who are working on bespoke data management solutions for a variety of use cases: medical data handling, smart city initiatives, logistics/supply chains and Internet of Things. We would love to see our …