The number of car manufacturers that use or plan to use blockchain technology in their products and system is increasing. This demonstrates the utility that blockchain has within the automobile industry—something that cannot and should not be ignored.

Just recently, MG Motors announced that the Chinese-owned company has partnered with Indian blockchain solutions provider Koinearth and will launch the MG Astor, the first-ever vehicle equipped with a blockchain-based digital passport in India, in the second week of September this year. The digital passport allows for driving data to be recorded on the blockchain, which includes speed, gas mileage, and maintenance, among other things.

On top of the car manufacturer is able to utilize the data on the digital passport to improve their vehicles, insurance firms and resellers that are given access to the data will also be able to make better and more informed decisions. This is because blockchain technology allows for data to be timestamped and recorded in an immutable manner, ensuring the security and authenticity of data.

For instance, an insurance company will be able to make an unquestionable decision on whether or not a driver’s premium will be increased or lowered depending on the driving prowess data recorded on the digital passport. Likewise, resellers will be able to more accurately price a vehicle based on the digital passport data.

MG Motors is just one of the major car manufacturers that have integrated blockchain technology into its product. General Motors (GM) and Honda have also spearheaded a group under the Mobility Open Blockchain Initiative (MOBI) that launched the first blockchain-based electric vehicle charging system last year. Global car manufacturers Ford, BMW, and Renault are also founding members of MOBI.

“Electric vehicles, chargers, and electricity producers can have a secure identity, communicate with a standard messaging format, and automatically record transactions such as charging, generation, and exchange on a distributed ledger,” MOBI Chief Operating Officer Tram Vo said.

Mercedes Benz, a subsidiary of global premium car producer Daimler AG, has created a blockchain prototype to ensure authenticity and consistency of its contract record-keeping along the supply chain.

“Blockchain technology has the potential to thoroughly revolutionize our procurement processes and could have an impact on virtually the entire value chain. Global supply chains are getting more and more complex. In the first stage with our blockchain prototype, we are testing one of the many application options, with the objective of creating greater transparency in the supply chain that goes beyond our direct suppliers,” Mercedes-Benz Cars Purchasing and Supplier Quality for Raw Materials and Strategy Head Sabine Angermann explained.

A few weeks ago, Porsche announced that it will auction off a design sketch combining the Taycan Cross Turismo model with the 911, while Audi will launch an NFT collection in China. Tesla, on the other hand, had accepted BTC payments for car purchases, although it has been suspended after it found out that BTC mining is detrimental to the environment due to its unscalable blockchain.

Whether through blockchain-based platforms and systems, merchandise in the form of NFT collections and payments, all of the above examples illustrate the usefulness of blockchain technology in the automobile industry.

Of course, not any blockchain would do for these major car manufacturers, as a massive amount of data will surely be generated. A scalable blockchain needs to be used in order to accommodate global enterprises. Imagine how big the data will be if just 10% of the billions of cars worldwide will transition to a blockchain-based system. The case of Tesla and BTC proves this point.

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