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PURPOSE IN MERGING AI & BLOCKCHAIN
Perhaps you’re familiar with autonomous cars by now, flying drones, or chess masters loosing to computers; examples that are fueled by artificial intelligence. AI is enabled for computers to solve problems for themselves, basically giving them the ability to write code in response to new problems they encounter. When linked with blockchains, AI is able to be better understood by humans, operate more efficiently and make blockchains in general more efficient.
In order for machines to learn, they need massive amounts of data to analyze, just like humans. The difference is that humans analyze their data passively, we use our five senses to take in the world and we store it away to create our belief in how the world functions. Trent McConaghy explains in the article written on Medium, “Because blockchains introduced three new characteristics:
· Decentralized / Shared Control
· Immutable / Audit Trails
· Native Assets / Exchanges.
People inspired by Bitcoin were pleased to overlook the traditional database-centric shortcomings, because these new benefits had potential to impact industries and society at large in wholly new ways.” McConaghy continues by suggesting, “These three new ‘blockchain’ database characteristics are also potentially interesting for AI applications.”
Machines don’t have senses, they need data, and blockchains can help them acquire that data faster and more efficient (thanks to decentralization/shared control). Some AI may learn better than others, and by sharing IP/testing models on an exchange, there is the potential for faster growth (and profit for developers). Once AI starts learning, it becomes far easier to trace the path it took to a solution if that path is stored on an immutable trail. Considering that one of the primary reasons AI is being created in the first place is to make the lives of humans easier. One obvious venue is being explored by using AI and the blockchain to create both active and passive income streams.
WHAT EXACTLY IS BEING DONE WITH AI & BLOCKCHAIN?
Blockchain technology provides users with the ability to create a system on which they can run smart contracts, track a ledger, and more. AI and machine learning allow for hands-off programs that are designed to become more efficient and smarter over time. As Bo Xing and Tshilidzi Marwala explained in their University of Johannesburg paper, there are eight important ways AI can help blockchains; four of which are appropriate to this topic:
· Scalability: AI can perform collaborative learning without a centralized dataset.
· Security: AI can detect blockchain application layer intrusion issues.
· Privacy: AI can improve the performance of hash functions.
· Efficiency: AI can predict the likelihood of a node to fulfill certain mining tasks.
It is noticeable how much of an impact AI will have on blockchains, and companies that are getting a head-start in the industry will benefit greatly from such foresight. From increased scalability, enhanced security/privacy, and greater efficiency; AI will make it cheaper, safer, and easier to operate blockchains in general. Presently, there is a collection of cases where we can see AI and the blockchain working together on specific problems:
DIGITAL CURRENCY TRADING
Trading digital currencies is a risky market in the same way that the stock market can be dangerous, and one of the worst ways to increase this danger is by involving emotions. If the market starts crashing you may have a panic attack and quickly sell, only to watch the market bounce back higher than it ever was, leaving you at a loss. One simple way to prevent these emotional mistakes is by using an AI built crypto-bot to trade, such as Autonio or Cryptohopper. Crypto bots are built on four principles: algorithms, market prediction, stop losses and AI. Through these companies it is common for users to subscribe to “signals,” or external services that provide trading strategies based on the data they’ve collected and analyzed using AI. If the average trader removes themselves from the equation, and instead base their trading on strategies generated by artificial intelligence, they are far more likely to succeed.
MUSIC STREAMING
As we know in today’s market, musicians struggle to earn their rights. For instance, MusicLife is a company that is working hard to change that by using blockchain technology infused with artificial intelligence. On the Musiclife platform, artists are automatically paid through smart contracts every time their music is streamed. This alone helps to ensure that the artists make more money for their work compared to traditional streaming platforms. But the real kicker here is Musiclife’s pricing model. Using an AI pricing method, the music price through the platform automatically adjusts based on current market playback data, so the more popular a song is the more money the artist will make.
Given the potential of the AI plus blockchain music streaming industry, there's no surprise to see big names like Spotify acquiring Niland, which is a startup focused on using AI for user-preference predictions.
For those that are not musicians or professional digital currency traders, these technologies may feel a bit detached from our daily lives. Fortunately, there is a third option for making money in this industry, both during our lives and even potentially long after we’ve passed.
CREATING AN AVATAR LEGACY
A legacy used to be something that only the powerful and wealthy could afford to think about, but as decentralization technology helps to disrupt the status quo the possibility of creating lasting change is opening up to everyone. Whether the goal is to provide for your family after death, or to have the work you've dedicated your life to carry on after your passing, avatars may be what you seek. The concept created by EverLife, avatars are created using a combination of artificial intelligence and blockchain technology that gives users a platform where they can create a digital legacy. By harnessing a combination of machine learning, smart contracts, teachable skills, and secure avatar-to-avatar communications, there are a few key things achieved with an avatar:
· Passive Income: Avatars can be taught to perform specific tasks (that will earn you EVER tokens), to trade digital currencies using your trading strategies (utilizing potential Skills Marketplace features), and to even seek new skills and tasks to add to their repertoire.
· Personal Legacy: Your avatar can interview you, recording your answers while compiling the story of your life to give future generations of your family the chance to interact with you (through your avatar) long after you’ve died.
When creating avatars, EverLife implemented AI into their systems to ensure growth and that expansion would continue long after user input ceased. They understood that blockchains alone wouldn’t be sufficient, which is the same conclusion Bo Xing and Tshilidzi Marwala arrived: “The DNA of the 4IR (Industrial Revolution) is AI, while blockchain represents one of the most disruptive technologies that may transform the whole economic system. Though blockchain holds various promises, this technology is still in its infancy.”
In order words, what EverLife, Marwala, and Xing are suggesting is that although the blockchain may be a groundbreaking technology, only by intertwining it with artificial intelligence will we truly see its full potential.
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