An international, cross-industry, blockchain-powered vehicle history platform is under making after the coming together of tech heavyweights and carmaking giants. The teams involved are BMW, Ford and Honda on the automobile side and one the tech side, some of the prominent ones like IBM and Accenture.
According to a press release, the tech firms and automobile manufacturers will be teaming up to work on the Mobility Open Blockchain Initiative (MOBI)’s new Vehicle Identity Standards (VID) I & II Working Group. The initiative will focus on aspects like vehicle registration and maintenance traceability. This is aimed at helping vehicle owners and dealer to access the tamper-proof information on vehicles, which will include damage history and mileage. This is also referred to as “vehicle birth certificate” in common usage. The working group also said, “Vehicle registration on the blockchain allows formerly disconnected vehicle registration systems between states and countries to connect using a secure, shared, and trusted ledger”.
The group working on the project will be headed by BMW and Ford, and will also include Amazon Web Services, the AutoData Group, Bosch, Car IQ, DENSO, DMX, Hitachi’s USA subsidiary, Kar Auction Services, Luxoft, Quantstamp, Ownum and the United Services Automobile Association.
The companies involved wrote in an official release,
“Vehicle registration on the blockchain allows formerly disconnected vehicle registration systems between states and countries to connect using a secure, shared, and trusted ledger. Maintenance traceability will provide a tamper-proof history to buyers, regulators, and insurers, therefore reducing vehicle information asymmetry.”
The MOBI (Mobility Open Blockchain Initiative) also said that the platform under making would also handle with supply chain, automotive financing, electric vehicle charging, and autonomous vehicle data exchange-related matters. A peer MOBI member is the blockchain and auto project carVertical, based in Lithuania and it is already providing a car history data platform which also uses the blockchain technology. Hence this cross-industry vehicle history program will not be the automobile industry’s first leap into blockchain technology. Some other members in the project include the tire maker Continental, in addition to the crypto players ConsenSys, Ripple, R3 and Crypto Valley, and the auto giants Hyundai and GM.
This is definitely not a first time for the giant car manufacturers as they have all had their introduction to the blockchain as a need for service. For example, BMW Group had announced in March 2020 that it has stated a blockchain-powered supply chain management system called PartChain that will help the German luxury car manufacturer to track vehicle components.