iOTA is a cryptocurrency startup on a mission to launch the first publicly accessible decentralized data marketplace for the internet of things (IOT). It has already partnered with Microsoft, Samsung, Volkswagen, Cisco and Fujitsu, just to name a few.
iOTA foundation is officially registered in Germany and has been working on the data marketplace since 2015. iOTA is sitting as the eighth largest cryptocurrency, with a market cap of over $3 billion. However, what makes iOTA unique is the technology is not based on the blockchain and is based on Tangle. Tangle is a blockless distributed ledger that makes it possible to transfer value with no fees. This is due to the consensus being part of the system, unlike traditional networks, such as blockchain, where the consensus is decoupled. This enables Tangle to be a self regulated peer-to-peer network.
Omkar Naik - Enterprise sales at Microsoft leading Blockchain said:
We are excited to partner with IOTA foundation and proud to be associated with its new data marketplace initiative. This next generation technology will accelerate the connected, intelligent world and go beyond blockchain that will foster innovation real world solutions, applications and pilots for our customers
Dr. Rolf Werner, Head of Central Europe at Fujitsu said:
The possibilities of applications based on Blockchain and especially Tangle (“next generation Blockchain”) are immense. Providing public access to valuable data is one of the most pressing challenges within IOT. The Data Marketplace of the IOTA Foundation is one of the most innovative initiatives in this area. As one of the world’s largest IT companies, Fujitsu is strongly supportive by developing Blockchain and Tangle-based offerings and actively integrating them as scalable solutions into the ecosystems of our customers.
The future for iOTA is looking very promising, with big partners, investors and now starting to see major acceptance from large coin exchanges. Let's hope the doubt floating around about Tangle running on binary hardware will not encounter too many difficulties going forward.