The key to shared mobility, writes Fast Company, may be the blockchain. What the heck is that? It’s a decentralized ledger shared by thousands of computers that tracks transactions in blocks. Every transaction creates a block that links to the block before and after it, and all changes are recorded across all computers. Known best for being the technology behind the bitcoin, it may be the thing that builds trust among vehicle owners someday, and just the ticket to getting them to share their cars and make money outside of a percentage-demanding umbrella like today’s rideshare companies.
Someone using a blockchain would be able to specify who could use their car (using a rating system) and exactly when and how. Users who meet those criteria in the system would get access to unlock and start the vehicle, and money would trade hands directly between the owner and the borrower.
Fast Company has an in-depth piece on how this all might work here, including a look at what autonomous vehicles will mean and how they might use the system.