A MAJOR interface between industry practitioners and academe on a new technology called "blockchain" is set in Bacolod City this week.
The Bacolod Negros Occidental Federation for Information and Communications Technology (Bnefit), in a press statement Sunday, May 20, said it will host the Bacolod Blockchain Initiative on Thursday, May 24 at Carlos Hilado Memorial State College in Talisay City.
The activity is also initiated by various partners including the Singapore-based incubator Ethereum World, Manila-based firm DynaQuest Technology Services, and software development firm based in Bacolod HYBrain Development Corporation.
HYBrain founder John Dave Dueñas, president of Bnefit, said Ethereum World has invested in the best technology to provide executive services for all entities to help all visionaries expand their business ideas and discuss with a team of top developers and advisors.
The initiative mainly aims to introduce "blockchain" technology which has been in the mainstream media due to the popularity of one of its applications known as the cryptocurrency.
Dueñas, however, said "blockchain" is more than cryptocurrency.
"It is a technology that introduces a new wave of the internet, secure sharing of data, and effective integration of data among processes now being referred to as the software development technology of the future," he added.
Only a few countries like the United States of America and United Arab Emirates have included "blockchain" technology in their respective academic curriculum.
Dueñas said when blockchain integrator company Ethereum World showed an interest in introducing the technology in Bacolod City, BNEFIT has to grab the opportunity.
"This will open the doors in the province, and the city to explore the possibility of being the first location in the Philippines having academic institutions incorporating blockchain in their elective courses," he also said.
Facilitators during the workshop include Ethereum World Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Daniel Adams, Ethereum Business Development Director Chris Thompson, and Dynaquest CEO Randy Knutson.
For her part, Bnefit Executive Director Jocelle Batapa-Sigue said the project is a big boost to the federation's iTEACH program, which is composed of a series of industry-led digital workshops for the academe.
"We only have a few more years, before new technologies create major disruptions to the workplace and Bnefit has no time to waste," she added.