The Wild, Distributed World: Get Ready for Radical Infrastructure Changes, from Blockchains to the Interplanetary File System to the Internet of Things

摘要

These are just a few possibilities. Virtually any system or network or business structure that relies on centralized authority, or on "trusted intermediaries" to enable transactions, can potentially be the target of the disruptive forces to come (or not-centralized networks continue to be perfect solutions for many situations). Issues such as how existing laws and regulations will apply to these new structures will be of critical importance. To be fair, focusing on decentralization and distributed, peer-to-peer networks such as block-chains may be the equivalent of gazing out of just one narrow window upon what almost certainly is a much larger sea of change. There are a very wide variety of emerging technologies that could be converging to radically alter our world. But what is important to recognize is that these winds of change, whatever their source, provide enormous opportunities to reimagine from the ground up what infrastructure might provide the soundest framework for future growth, and give nimble companies exciting new business opportunities.