This article is a guest contribution from George Siosi Samuels, Managing Director of Faiā. Find out here how Faiā is committed to staying at the forefront of technological advancements.
With the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) and the proliferation of data-driven business models, the potential for a shift from surveillance capitalism to digital totalitarianism is no longer just a science fiction trope – as the mentions James Cameron in this tweet – it’s a reality. a real and urgent concern. As for-profit tech giants increasingly mine data in bulk, some advocates see blockchain technology as a solution to potential conflicts of interest in AI. However, the path to realizing this vision is fraught with technological, political and trust-related challenges.
The threat of surveillance capitalism
Surveillance capitalisminvented by Shoshana Zuboff, describes a system in which companies like Google (NASDAQ: GOOGL), Facebook (NASDAQ: META), and Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) take advantage of collecting and analyzing user data to predict and influence the behavior. What started as a way to sell targeted ads has become a mechanism of control in which data monopolies shape the information we see, the decisions we make, and ultimately how society functions. The rise of this system has raised fears of a future in which data is not only used to market products, but also to enforce compliance and design social behaviors. James Cameron, among others, has expressed concerns that unchecked AI, coupled with massive data collection, could lead us into a dystopian future of digital authoritarianism.
However, there might be a way to counter this trend, which lies in a technology once considered the future of finance: Bitcoin. Still, it’s not the Bitcoin that most people think of when they hear the word. We are talking about a more scalable and ambitious vision of blockchain technology that has sparked heated debates, political conflicts and technological rivalries. The Bitcoin that could potentially serve as a decentralized backbone for today’s AI networks is Bitcoin SV (BSV).
The BTC vs. BSV debate: scalability vs. stability
At the heart of this debate is scalability. BTC, often called digital gold, has a block size capped at 1MB, limiting the number of transactions it can process per second. This decision, made by the main developers of BTC, effectively oriented Bitcoin towards a store of value, prioritizing stability over transaction throughput. BTC’s network currently only handles around seven transactions per second, making it impractical for broader use cases such as everyday retail payments or data-intensive applications, where capping the size of blocks was a measure to keep Bitcoin aligned with traditional financial systems, ensuring that banks and other intermediaries remained relevant by maintaining high transaction fees and low throughput. This led to criticism that the initial vision of BTC had been compromised, becoming a “safe” digital asset that fits seamlessly into the existing financial framework rather than challenging it.
BSV, meanwhile, has emerged to restore what its supporters claim was Satoshi Nakamoto’s original vision: a scalable, fast, and inexpensive digital currency. By removing the block size limit, BSV can theoretically handle millions of transactions per second, positioning itself as a scalable data ledger for applications beyond financial transactions. Projects like Teranode aim to demonstrate this by achieving unprecedented throughput, making BSV a potential protocol layer for decentralized applications, smart contracts and even AI systems.
Beyond digital money
BSV supporters see their blockchain as more than digital money: they see it as infrastructure. With its unlimited scalability, BSV could support various applications, from IoT networks to supply chain tracking to decentralized AI ecosystems. Imagine a future in which AI systems are not owned and managed by a few tech giants, but are instead distributed on a blockchain, where anyone can contribute and access resources. This would mean that no single entity controls AI and no centralized power can manipulate data flows or impose unilateral surveillance.
A recent Deloitte report highlights how blockchain technology can improve transparency, reduce transaction costs and streamline processes across various industries, especially when scaled efficiently. By enabling fast and cheap data transactions, a scalable blockchain like BSV could serve as the backbone of decentralized AI networks, which rely on sharing data among multiple nodes without risking privacy violations or monopolies of data.
The potential synergy: integration of AI and blockchain
AI systems require large amounts of data to operate effectively, and current AI infrastructure relies heavily on centralized cloud services. This setup makes data sensitive to monopolies and raises security and privacy concerns. BSV’s unlimited scalability could support decentralized AI networks, in which data is processed and stored across multiple nodes, reducing the risk of centralized control.
According to PwC, AI adoption could contribute up to $15.7 trillion to the global economy by 2030, but this technology needs reliable and scalable infrastructure to reach its full potential. Blockchain’s ability to create immutable, decentralized networks can provide the backbone for more secure and transparent AI operations. Imagine a healthcare system in which patient data is securely shared between clinics via blockchain (see report here or examples in Estonia), enabling better collaboration without compromising confidentiality. Or consider a global supply chain network in which AI algorithms optimize logistics without any single entity controlling the data.
Conclusion: can decentralization counter digital totalitarianism?
As the digital landscape evolves, we must decide whether to embrace a future dominated by centralized control or invest in scalable, decentralized systems that prioritize transparency, privacy, and freedom. To evolve towards the latter solution, scalable blockchain platforms must not only prove their technological capabilities, but also build trust (between people) through transparent governance And community driven development. It’s not just about avoiding dystopia, it’s about creating a digital infrastructure that empowers everyone, not just a privileged few.
The irony is palpable: a technology designed to decentralize and democratize power is held back by a concentration of influence. BSV has shown that Bitcoin can scale and that there is a future in which blockchain is not just digital gold but a scalable platform for decentralized applications– including AI. However, the potential for such innovation is hampered by trust issues surrounding people and leadership.
We are at a crossroads. Will we let a few tech giants dominate the digital landscape, or will we promote scalable, decentralized systems that allow AI and other digital innovations to thrive without centralized control? The future of digital freedom may depend on our ability to answer this question.
References
- Deloitte Global Blockchain Survey 2021 (source)
- PwC, Blockchain technologies could boost the global economy $1.76 trillion (source)
- PwC, AI Adoption in Business: Current Trends and Future Forecasts (source)
- EY, How blockchain could introduce real-time auditing (source)
- KPMG, Blockchain & generative AI: the perfect couple? (source)
- Accenture, The rise of AI and Blockchain synergy
For artificial intelligence (AI) to operate within the law and thrive in the face of increasing challenges, it must integrate an enterprise blockchain system that ensures the quality and ownership of data capture, enabling it to protect data while also ensuring immutability. of data. Check out CoinGeek’s coverage on this emerging technology to find out more why enterprise blockchain will be the backbone of AI.
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