The European Innovation Council (EIC) has announced the six winners of its Prize on Blockchains for Social Good that will receive €5 million ($5.6 million) between them. Solicitation for entries began in May 2018 and closed in September 2019. The EIC received 176 applications from a diverse range of international individuals, firms, and public institutions. Creators of its 23 favorite concepts were invited to a hearing with its Jury of experts and public workshop in February 2020 before the EIC made its decision.
Dutch start-up WordProof received €1 million ($1.1 million) of the EIC’s investment. The firm aspires to rebuild trust and transparency on the internet, especially in the era of fake news and privacy concerns. It offers a “time machine” feature that uses blockchain to store previous versions of a website and show what edits have been made, as well as services to protect copyright information on a blockchain and improve firms’ SEO. The concept intends to be accessible to all and operates as a browser plugin.
The London-based food and product traceability company Provenance also received €1 million for its Proof Points system. This platform attempts to strengthen the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) “by enabling consumer goods brands to be publicly transparent on their social and environmental impact in a format designed for the Internet age”. The platform can fact-check brands’ claims and provide evidence to information hungry customers to support or refute them in simple formats.
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