Blockchain is present process a important turning level, shifting from an rising expertise right into a helpful enterprise instrument that enterprises need to incorporate into present IT stacks. As extra firms proceed to discover how blockchain may help obtain digital transformation, main cloud service suppliers are displaying elevated curiosity. 

For instance, Google Cloud just lately turned a community block producer by becoming a member of the EOS blockchain group. Block producers on EOS are elected by token holders so as to add transactions to blocks, add blocks to the blockchain, and implement software program adjustments.

Whereas Google Cloud should nonetheless be elected to change into one of many 21 energetic EOS block producers, Allen Day, developer advocate at Google Cloud, informed Cointelegraph that Google is broadly fascinated by open-source protocols and distributed ledger expertise, or DLT:

“We’re seeing energetic enterprise participation in these kinds of networks, and imagine Google Cloud can cut back the friction for firms to run their very own Google Cloud-hosted nodes on the community. We’re additionally offering cloud infrastructure to Block.one as properly, serving to them host their very own growth efforts.”

Earlier this 12 months, Google Cloud additionally joined Hedera Hashgraph’s governing council, enabling Google Cloud to function a Hedera community node. In accordance with Day, Hedera ledger information is now accessible for analytics alongside Google Cloud Platform’s different public distributed ledger datasets. Google Cloud additionally runs a validator node for the Theta Community, a decentralized video platform.

Along with Google Cloud’s assist for DLT, Amazon Internet Companies is listed as a cloud service supplier for China’s Blockchain-Primarily based Service Community — a government-backed initiative designed to assist small- to medium-sized companies construct and deploy blockchain functions. It’s additionally notable that Microsoft introduced it will be integrating the Lition blockchain into its Azure Cloud market.

DLT and cloud expertise allow digital transformation

In accordance with Day, DLTs, like blockchain, are enabling digital transformation. As such, Google needs to extend consciousness of how firms can profit by actively taking part on blockchain networks. Particularly, Google Cloud is ramping up its personal safety measures by taking part on blockchain networks. Day defined that Google Cloud will leverage superior safety measures on EOS and is constructing safety by progressive layers to ship in-depth protection:

“We don’t assume any belief between providers, and use a number of mechanisms to ascertain and preserve belief. Knowledge saved on our Google infrastructure is robotically encrypted at relaxation, and communications over the web to our cloud providers are encrypted.”

Kevin Rose, senior vice chairman of public blockchain engagement at Block.one — the corporate behind EOS — informed Cointelegraph that Google’s participation on EOS will allow new enterprise fashions for each events to drive the digital financial system.

Alistair Rennie, common supervisor of IBM Blockchain, informed Cointelegraph that blockchain and cloud applied sciences work fairly properly collectively, “Blockchain delivers the lacking aspect of belief that cloud expertise alone can’t present,” he mentioned. “Cloud suppliers are rising more and more fascinated by blockchain as a way to enabling better belief and seamless collaboration amongst disparate stakeholders.”

Will main corporations convey centralization to blockchain?

As main cloud service suppliers be a part of the blockchain revolution, group members could query the influence this might have on a decentralized ecosystem.

Regardless of this, because the blockchain area continues to mature, it seems that large gamers like Google, Amazon and Microsoft are certainly being welcomed in. Konstantin Richter, founder and CEO of Blockdaemon — a multi-chain cloud community administration instrument — informed Cointelegraph that EOS has beforehand confronted scrutiny over the shortage of variety amongst its block producers. Nonetheless, Richter defined that bringing Google Cloud into the EOS group ought to actually assist the ecosystem generate extra traction:

“It’s necessary to allow participation and permit for levels of decentralization to create a extra environment friendly, honest and open monetary system since it’s a arduous requirement for accountability and validity of knowledge. We try to permit decentralization on an infrastructure degree, however we’re no substitute for a pure numerous set of node homeowners.”

Echoing Richter, Drew Saunders, founder and CEO of PAC International — a decentralized storage platform — informed Cointelegraph that dependable blockchain contribution is required whatever the people or firms concerned. Saunders commented that Google Cloud is reputably recognized for reliability and that EOS already has a broad, decentralized consumer base supporting the community.

However because the EOS community depends on 21 block producers that should be voted in by token holders, plainly considerations over one block producer or node validator failing to hold out governance duties shouldn’t end in a community failure. Moreover, it’s necessary to remember that Google Cloud has but to be elected in. Rose talked about that Google Cloud may very well be voted in shortly if EOS token holders really feel it’s vital:

“It’s actually as much as Google Cloud and what their plans are for participating with the EOS Community group. And since voting on EOS is open-ended and steady, to make sure that the highest 21 are all the time a real-time reflection of the mixture will of the EOS token-holders, we will probably be consistently evaluating Google Cloud towards our standards, simply as we do with all Block Producer candidates.”