CRYPTO

Crypto countries

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey may think bitcoin will unite the planet, but the governments of the world are less sure.

In fact...rather than pin their hopes on pure cryptocurrencies like bitcoin or ether, many governments are taking matters into their own hands and exploring central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). So far, only five countries have rolled out CBDCs nationwide, though the number of countries exploring them has more than doubled, rising from 35 in May 2020 to 81 in July 2021.

• In October 2020, the Bahamas became the first country to roll out a CBDC nationwide. It’s dubbed the “sand dollar.”
• And in May 2020, China began a pilot of its digital yuan. To date, the country has seen over $5.39 billion in transactions via the digital currency. 

The good, the bad

Managed and legitimized by national banks, CBDCs could give poorer people greater access to the perks of the modern, digitized banking system, like convenience and security. They could also lower the cost of banking by eliminating fees, and provide a simpler and faster way for immigrants to send remittances to their family and friends back home. 

“Millions of people who currently can't afford to be in the banking system and therefore are relegated to conducting economic activity in physical cash would be able to get online and participate in an internet-based economy more easily,” Lev Menand, a lecturer and fellow at Columbia Law School, told Emerging Tech Brew. 

But CBDCs, like all things digital, could be susceptible to hacking and other forms of privacy breaches—both from third parties and prying governments alike. And unlike cryptocurrencies, which pride themselves on being decentralized, CBDCs are as centralized as it gets: they’re legal tender minted and offered by a central bank. 

Bottom line: CBDCs have the potential to reshape the way that banking is done in the digital age. They can lower the cost of banking and make its benefits more accessible to all—but whether that promise is met depends entirely on preparation and implementation.

“If you don't do a good job thinking them through, just like any project, you can cause problems,” Menand said. “A CBDC isn't something that just takes care of itself—it requires a lot of coordination and work.”

Click here to read the full version of this story.—JM 

CONNECTIVITY

A swarm of satellites

SpaceX has added a new star to its constellation. The Elon Musk-led space company acquired satellite data provider Swarm Technologies, per an August 6 FCC filing. The merger, which the companies agreed to in July, will make Swarm and its...swarm...of 120 satellites a subsidiary of SpaceX.

• The filing states the acquisition will strengthen “the combined companies’ ability to provide innovative satellite services that reach unserved and underserved parts of the world.”

Swarm’s CubeSat satellites, which the company says are about the size of a grilled cheese sandwich, transfer small amounts of data to IoT devices. They mostly fulfill low-bandwitdth needs for agriculture, maritime, energy, environmental, and transportation companies. They might help an organization monitor water levels or track buoys, for example.

• As Swarm CEO and cofounder Sara Spangelo told us, one day before the FCC filing, the company is "moving small amounts of really useful data from anyone on the planet, with really tiny devices.”
• She said the company moves data at one-to-three kilobytes per second (for context, the average internet download speed is way faster, at 12-25 megabytes per second.)

In contrast, SpaceX’s satellite efforts center around Starlink, a broadband provider that has nearly 70,000 users but is burning through cash at a rocket-like pace. 

The upshot...in Spangelo's words: “We're not actually a direct competitor with Starlink.”—JM

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AI

Raising the standards

Until August 19, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is soliciting information on an artificial intelligence risk management framework. NIST is a US government body that sets scientific standards. 

In this case...NIST’s goal is to create a living document that helps ensure AI systems “are built to align with core values in society, and in ways which minimize harms to individuals, groups, communities, and societies at large.” The effort comes from a July 2020 congressional directive. 

In September, NIST will hold a public workshop to flesh out the outline for this framework. Eventually, it’ll release a draft, which will be subject to at least one open comment period of its own.

NIST has some other responsible AI projects that are further along, including...a framework for fostering trust in AI systems, another framework, but for reducing bias in AI, and a set of principles defining explainable AI.

Sri Krishnamurthy, who founded AI advisory firm QuantUniversity and plans to submit a proposal to the NIST solicitation, told us the approach is promising because it’s a more comprehensive way for companies to evaluate AI. 

• “Just looking at safety, explainability, is not really going to solve the problem,” he said. “You have to look at it from the context of risk management.”

Big picture: AI risk assessment—like any responsible AI best practice—will make it easier for companies to know how to develop ethical systems. But without a regulatory body enforcing adherence to these frameworks, responsible AI development remains voluntary.—DM

BITS & BYTES

Stat: Some buzzword validation: 65 SEC filings included the word “metaverse” so far this year, up from 33 in 2020, and a goose egg in 2019. 

Quote: “I’m proud to partner with Senators Blackburn and Klobuchar in this breakthrough blow against Big Tech bullying.”—Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT); The three senators introduced a bill that would bring sweeping changes to the Apple/Google app store duopoly.

Read: Why does tech illustration all look the same?

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WHAT ELSE IS BREWING

• Some Apple employees are questioning the company’s controversial decision to algorithmically scan users’ iPhone photos for evidence of child abuse. 
• Nvidia’s CEO didn’t deliver a conference keynote in April, as everyone thought—the company announced yesterday that a CGI replica actually addressed the audience.
• Samsung unveiled its new smart watch—made in partnership with Google—and updated foldable phone models at its 2021 Unpackaged event.
• The UK’s competition authority wants Facebook to unwind its Giphy acquisition.  

GOING PHISHING

Three of the following news stories are true, and one...we made up. Can you spot the odd one out?

• Salesforce has announced a streaming service called Salesforce+. 
• Volkswagen’s CEO rageposted on LinkedIn about his bad experience with an electric vehicle charging company that VW partially owns.  
• An augmented reality exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum was shut down after the tech made too many people nauseous.
• A hacker stole over $611 million in crypto earlier this week, and now they’re giving it back. 

TECH THROWBACK

Almost exactly 30 years ago, in August 1981, IBM released its first personal computer. It cost $1,565 and was targeted at both consumers and professional users. 

• Here’s the original press release. 

ICYMI

Catch up on the top Emerging Tech Brew stories from the past few editions: 

• Finally, a flying car SPAC
• Crypto has cross-border promise
• Biden’s EV goals meet reality

GOING PHISHING ANSWER

The Brooklyn Museum has not decommissioned a VR exhibit due to nausea, at least that we're aware of.