Smartphone manufacturer HTC has announced its plans to enter the cryptocurrency ecosystem and blockchain industry by developing a new Android smartphone that will be powered by blockchain technology. In the late 2000s, this Taiwanese firm introduced a smartphone based on the Android operating system and now it wants to go further.
The phone is named and it is described by the company as the “world’s first native blockchain phone”. Exodus will have a universal native wallet and a built-in secure hardware that will provide support for cryptocurrencies and decentralized applications (DApps).
HTC Exodus will also support underlying protocols such as bitcoin, Lightning Networks, Ethereum, Dfinity, and other major networks. Moreover, it is expected that some more partnerships will be established later in order to support the entire blockchain ecosystem.
Exodus can be considered to be a mobile connecting point to the world of decentralized networks and a storage device that will be very useful for those who want to have a simple access to their cryptos.
The work on the development of a new device will be headed by Phil Chen, who earlier worked on creation of HTC’s virtual reality headset Vive. And now he is back to wow the world with HTC’s advanced device and to manage all the company’s cryptocurrency and blockchain-related initiatives.
“I want to see a world where the end consumers can truly own their data (browsing history, identity, assets, wallets, emails, messaging, etc) without the need for central authorities. There is a lot of work ahead of us, but I believe the mobile hardware layer can contribute significantly to our new decentralized world,” Chen.
Though the price of the new devices is still unknown, it has been announced that the company is going to start distributing the device by the end of the year. Moreover, it is expected that HTC will accept cryptocurrency as a way of payment for its new phone.
But it is not the first attempt of mobile phone makers to enter the crypto world. As it has been by CoinSpeaker, in December, Sirin Labs raised more than $100 million in less than 24 hours for the development of their blockchain smartphone called Finney.
In general, the company $157 million in its ICO to build Finney. Sirin Labs has an aim to eliminate the gap between the wide audience and the blockchain economy and promises to introduce their new phone in October.
Another tech giant, the world’s third-biggest handset maker Huawei has also taken a decision to make cryptocurrencies more available for its users, offering them an access to a bitcoin wallet via Huawei’s native AppGallery. As we have already , such a move will be possible thanks to the partnership between Huawei and the owner of the world’s largest bitcoin mining pool BTC dot com.
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Japanese internet giant GMO has updated its plans to manufacture and sell its 7nm bitcoin mining chips as well as for its own mining operations. Interested customers will soon be able to reserve some of these chips.
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GMO Readies 7nm Mining Chips
Japanese conglomerate GMO Internet Group published its first quarter results for the fiscal year 2018 last week. During the earnings results presentation, the company outlined its plans for the sale of its long-awaited 7nm bitcoin mining chips.
GMO is building two versions of the chip, dubbed V1 and V2. The former is the initial prototype of the 7nm mining chip. The latter is for mass production of the 7nm mining chips, which the company plans to use in-house for its own mining operations, sell to the public, and use in cloud mining.
V2 is now being designed and will enter the mass production phase in the fourth quarter of this year.
Sale of 7nm Chips Starting Soon
In its presentation, GMO has revised its mining business plans from the fourth quarter of last year. The company now indicates that its mining operations are initially “based on store-bought mining computers,” and in roughly June the “7nm (V1) operation” will commence and in approximately October the “7nm (V2) operation” will be underway.
As for the sale of its 7nm bitcoin mining chips, the company spokesperson told news.bitcoin.com:
We can disclose that accepting reservation will start from Q2 onwards and launch will be Q4 onwards only at this moment.
The actual sale dates are not specified. Furthermore, the company says its cloud mining operation will be launched in June.
GMO’s Mining Business
The mining business was launched on December 20 through GMO’s European legal entity. It comprises three areas: “[1] In-house mining; [2] Develop, manufacture, and sell mining machines; [and 3] Cloud mining.”
GMO says “Hash rate is increasing as planned. Amount of mined bitcoin is increasing as expected.” The company added that it has “new businesses at multiple locations in 2 countries,” noting that its hashrate in April was 241 PH/s but is confident that it will reach the target hashrate of 3,000 PH/s by the year’s end.
In addition to its mining business, GMO also operates a crypto exchange called GMO Coin and plans to launch a crypto payment service. The company aims “to become No. 1 in the field of cryptocurrency.”
Do you want to buy GMO’s 7nm chips? Let us know in the comments section below.
Images courtesy of Shutterstock and GMO Internet.
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We’re honored to share that Garrick Hileman, one of the top 35 most influential economists in the U.K. and Ireland, has joined the team at Head of Research. Known best for his work on cryptocurrencies and block chain technology, Garrick was recently named as one of the 100 most influential economists in the U.K. and Ireland, and has paved the way for a broader understanding of distributed ledger technology. At Blockchain, he will help lead a new research arm aimed elevating block chain technology to its full potential.
As one of the foremost thinkers within the industry, Garrick has become an authority figure whose work has shaped the cryptocurrency field. He is the author of multiple industry standard publications, including the 2017 Global Cryptocurrency Benchmarking Study, as well as the 2017 Global Blockchain Benchmarking Study. He was also the responsible for the creation of the State of bitcoin and State of Blockchain reports published by CoinDesk between 2013 and 2016. Garrick developed the first university class on blockchain technology at the University of Cambridge, and has shared his wealth of knowledge with a new generation of students as a lecturer at the prestigious Judge Business School.
“There is no one in the cryptoasset space as widely-respected and cited as Garrick, and I am thrilled that he will be bringing his expertise to Blockchain,” said Peter Smith, CEO and Co-Founder of Blockchain. “Garrick will not only help to advance our company, but the industry at large with his work.”
Garrick holds a PhD in economic history from the London School of Economics, and before returning to the academic world, worked for well over a decade in the private sector with well-known brands including Bank of America, The Home Depot, IDG, and Allianz. He joins our team at a time of tremendous growth and innovation for the company. Recently, we introduced Goldman Sachs alumna Breanne Madigan to lead Institutional Sales and Strategy and former Google and Facebook executive Peter Wilson to serve as the VP of Engineering. At the beginning of the year, we also welcomed Marco Santori, formerly of Cooley, as President and Chief Legal Officer.
“After years of conducting research on distributed ledger technology, I am honored to be joining a company that is at the forefront of this new wave of innovation,” said Garrick Hileman. “It is very exciting to have the opportunity to continue to research block chain technology and help create value for millions of businesses and individuals around the world.”
