Thus far, we’ve mentioned how we can provide a digital service using a blockchain.
However, what about the situation in which we want to provide a real world service, leveraging a blockchain to make it happen? One of the biggest scenarios is infrastructure.
In hundreds of countries, infrastructure is one of its defining qualities.
Japan and Germany, for example, have world-renowned infrastructure.
But what happens if a country’s government cannot, or will not, build for its citizens? This could be because of a lack of capital, or simply a lack of desire.
In this scenario, it’s hard to find a central party that will collaborate on the behalf of citizens.
This is where a blockchain comes in.
A common infrastructure problem is that of smart energy grids.
Energy can transfer from a plant to a house, but what if a house has excess energy? Let’s say House A has excess energy, and House C lacks energy.
How can we build infrastructure from House A to C without relying on a central party? The solution is in smart contracts.
We can make promises through smart contracts to guarantee our financial commitment to a project.
House A can create a smart contract, put in $10,000, and say that, if both House B and House C also commit $10,000, then a contractor can redeem that money in exchange for working on this smart energy grid.
This immutable commitment scheme allows anyone to leverage smart money properties to the fullest.
Through smart contracts, we can coordinate between untrusting parties without a central entity.
In places where the government can’t or won’t contribute to the quality of life for citizens, they’re now able to do it themselves if they have the capital but not yet the system to securely combine their resources.
This is one of the most revolutionary concepts in blockchain, giving users the ability to be their own service providers.