Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve heard of blockchain. In 2010, companies were struggling to figure out where to bring in capabilities like the cloud, mobile and big data. Today it’s blockchain, IoT and AI. A lot of firsts in this new era.Here is a round of really interesting supply chain on the blockchain news this past week!‘World’s First’ Trade Blockchain Launches in Singapore to Link China and ASEAN NationsCrimsonLogic, a Singapore-based e-government service provider owned by a government agency and a major port operator, has announced the launch of a blockchain platform focused on cross-border trade. Currently, CrimsonLogic’s biggest shareholder (with 55 percent ownership) is IE Singapore, a government agency under the Ministry of Trade and Industry, which fosters the growth of Singaporean businesses overseas.The goal is to enable different parties, such as ports, shipping companies and customers, to view and transact trade-related documents in a distributed way to improve supply chain efficiency and transparency. CrimsonLogic believes that their blockchain technology can help create greater trust amongst cross-border traders in ASEAN and along China’s Belt Road Initiative and Southern Transport Corridor. Trade volume between ASEAN and China would become the single largest transaction between two regions and we hope to facilitate this.Reference: coindesk.com/ref4; cnn.com/ref10OpenText Delivering Blockchain, AI and IoT to Supply ChainsMark Morley, OpenText’s director of product marketing, tells ThirtyK the company will outline its approach for combining blockchain, IoT and AI in a forthcoming white paper.Click for source of photoIoT and AI are already becoming pervasive in supply chain management with sensors attached to trucks and goods sending information to AI applications that attempt to predict potential problems. OpenText also has applications to manage the data captured through sensors in IoT environments. The value of blockchain includes its ability to validate key pieces of information such as the provenance of raw materials, payment details and shipping information.Reference: thirtyk.com/ref5China’s cobalt dominance meets blockchain-backed resistanceCobalt mining is notorious for the use of child labour — specifically at small-scale “artisanal” mines in Congo, one of the world’s poorest countries. Major cobalt consumers from the U.S., Europe and Japan are working with China to tackle the problem of child labour. However, some have their doubts about the initiative.Click for source of photo“Chinese companies now claim they don’t use cobalt that may be tainted by child labour,” an executive at a major Japanese trading house said on condition of anonymity. “But it seems that tens of thousands of tons of such cobalt are still imported into China.”The blockchain technology is seen as a potentially powerful tool for eliminating child labour from the cobalt supply chain, while ensuring manufacturers know what they are getting when they buy direct. Basically, blockchains would be used to track cobalt’s journey from the mines all the way to the lithium-ion battery charging up in your garage.Reference: asia.nikkei.com/ref14With PwC, VeChain is building supply chain of the futureVeChain, a startup focusing on supply chain management, has been deploying blockchain technology to record the detailed history of products in order to provide a quick and easy way for consumers and relevant parties to verify their authenticity.VeChain offers product traceability and anti-counterfeiting solutions that use blockchain technology along with Internet of Things (IoT) to cover all aspects of the product’s life-cycle from manufacturing, logistics and supply chain, wholesale and retail to after-sales service and even consumer engagement.Reference: ejinsight.com/ref12Blockchain Technology in Healthcare Market Worth 829.0 Million USD by 2023As per MarketsandMarkets™ — “Blockchain Technology in Healthcare Market is expected to reach USD 829.0 million by 2023 from USD 53.9 million in 2018, at a CAGR of 72.8%.Healthcare Blockchain Market is segmented into supply chain management, clinical data exchange and interoperability, claims adjudication and billing management, and other applications. In 2018, the supply chain management segment accounted for the largest share of the Healthcare Blockchain Market. Factors such as the increasing number of counterfeit drugs in circulation and the implementation of stringent regulations such as the Drug Quality and Security Act (DQSA) in the US and the Falsified Medicines Directive (FMD) in Europe are driving the adoption of blockchain technologies for healthcare supply chain management.Reference: markets.businessinsider.com/ref13Soon we’ll use smartphones to trace our food on the blockchain. But there’s a catch: We’ll be traced, too.Among the newest entrants to this supply-chain technology field is the Oslo, Norway-based Thin Film Electronics ASA — Thinfilm for short. In May, Thinfilm announced a new service for companies that will make the “IoE — Internet of Everything” a reality.“The IoE (Internet of Everything) extends well beyond traditional IoT (Internet of Things) boundaries to include the countless everyday, disposable items in the world,” Thinfilm CEO Dr. Davor Sutija wrote in IoT Central last year. “If the IoT is the solar system, then the IoE is every galaxy in the universe.”Thinfilm boasts that it can “link offline behavior to online profiles” and “bring the power of digital marketing to the physical world.” Every time a shopper taps to see where their olive oil came from, they give up another byte of information, another tidbit to add to their consumer profile. Thinfilm’s products are part of a trend, a rush to learn as much about shoppers and their habits as possible.Reference: newfoodeconomy.org/ref15Want to know more about Sweetbridge?Sweetbridge is an open-source project unlocking the value trapped in assets, payment delays, and corporate talent. Our Blockchain-based ‘tools for commerce’ help companies, countries and individuals to find a better way to trade and innovate.To join the movement go to https://sweetbridge.com/crowdsale and click “Register Now”.Want to be one of the first to use the Sweetbridge Wallet?Join our alpha program to get access to a test version of the Sweetbridge Wallet and help us make it even better. Sign up at https://bit.ly/sweetbridgealphaJoin our discussion in Sweetbridge telegram channel to learn more about Sweetbridge and its products.Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook | Telegram | Reddit | InstagramSupply Chain/Blockchain Friday Wrap — Week ending 20 July 2018 was originally published in Sweetbridge on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.