Building Blocks

Two Fraunhofer Institutes [23] joined forces with two chairs at Technical University Dortmund to launch a European blockchain project, Blockchain Europe [24]. Blockchain Europe's members have developed several open source components [25] that allow companies to quickly and easily implement blockchain applications, including Token Manager for storing and managing assets, Authorization Module, and Light Node Service (Figure 2) for connecting physical devices to a blockchain and executing certified transactions.

Figure 2: Among other things, Blockchain Europe provides a construction kit for logistics applications.

These three components were ultimately used to create a blockchain-based document repository. Like IBM, the Blockchain Europe developers drew on existing software, using the Cosmos SDK [26] and the Tendermint [27] framework based on it.

In addition to the digital repository, there were plans to develop further applications (modules), including blockchain-based customs clearance, electronic waybills (e-waybills), and hazardous goods transportation monitoring [28]. The focus on logistics is not surprising, because the Fraunhofer Institute for Material Flow and Logistics (IML), the Chair of Corporate Logistics, and the Chair of Materials Handling and Warehousing were the organizations involved in the Blockchain Europe project.

However, Blockchain Europe has been dormant for around a year. The last publication was a free guide [29] on the development of blockchain-based business models. Customs clearance [30] and the e-waybill [31] were taken over by the Open Logistics Foundation. According to Max Austerjost, project manager at Blockchain Europe, the working group responsible for the e-waybill has rejected the blockchain approach and is looking for "simpler" approaches. The working group for customs clearance, on the other hand, is sticking with the blockchain, but it is currently still looking into funding additional developers.

Future Prospects

Despite the hype having died down, blockchain still seems to be popular. In a survey conducted by the IT industry association Bitkom [32] in fall 2023, blockchain continued to play a role in five percent of all start-up companies in Germany, while 22 percent were still looking into its use. In its press release, the city of Detroit actively called on entrepreneurs to submit ideas for further possible applications for blockchain by mid-December 2024 (no results had been announced at the time of going to print).

Blockchain also has a future at Bosch. In collaboration with Peaq [33], the company is looking to introduce a Decentralized Physical Infrastructure (DePIN) device. This involves decentralized management of transport systems, energy networks, and other physical infrastructures based on blockchain. Together with start-up Fetch AI, Bosch has also set up a foundation to promote decentralized systems based on AI using blockchains and to promote an exchange in the industry.

Bosch has also set its sights on mobility applications. Peter Busch, Director of the Mobility Strategy at Bosch, revealed that blockchain is already being used more widely in other industries, such as the financial sector. In the mobility sector, Busch says that applications are still more of a niche product and that there is often a lack of acceptance of the technology in this sector. With networking in the mobility sector on the rise, Busch sees the potential for products that can fill the gap in the future.

Bosch brings this perspective to the GAIA-X 4 moveID project, part of the publicly funded European GAIA-X cloud infrastructure solution. GAIA-X 4 moveID aims to develop a decentralized digital identity infrastructure for mobility in Europe [34]. Bosch is significantly involved as the consortium leader and also relies on blockchain as a basis.

Conclusions and Outlook

Blockchain has firmly established itself in the financial sector in particular. However, despite the wide range of potential applications and existing (open source) implementations, you still have to search for use cases in other fields. Due to the lack of communication on the part of the companies actively involved here, I can only speculate as to the reasons behind this. It is very likely that there are simply simpler and more established solutions for most use cases.

Max Austerjost cites another reason. He says that experience from various projects has shown that it is not technological feasibility but, instead, governance issues at the companies involved that make it difficult to establish blockchain solutions in practice, especially in logistics. Nevertheless, many companies, and start-ups in particular, still have blockchain on their radar, with some interesting approaches. It remains exciting to see which applications blockchain will drive forward in the future.