What is IOTA? What is the MIOTA Internet of Things application?

What is IOTA?

IOTA is an open-source distributed ledger, scalable, created to enable seamless value and data transfer between humans and machines. The project is built for the next generation of the digital revolution, called the Internet of Everything. IOTA has feeless transactions, tamper-proof data, as well as low resource requirements. Its network can support the Internet of Things (IoT) without requiring large infrastructure investments.

IOTA plays an important role in the next industrial revolution, requiring the creation and maintenance of machine economies - as well as the processing of financial relationships between machines and humans. MIOTA is a cryptocurrency that empowers this new digital economy.

How does IOTA work?

IOTA, unlike blockchain-based cryptocurrencies, has proposed a different data structure called Tangle. This type of structure stores and manages digital representations in a unique way. It allows the IOTA network to overcome the scaling issues of Bitcoin by removing the geographical barriers and typical limitations associated with using a ‘traditional’ blockchain.

Similar to XRP, IOTA tokens are pre-mined, while its transactions are validated using Tangle, a Directed Acyclic Graph (DAG). DAG is a new mathematical concept with very interesting real-world applications when applied to current blockchain technology.

While some other blockchains may be considered DAG, they do not have a parallel system like IOTA.

Unlike other blockchains, transactions on the IOTA Tangle network can be processed simultaneously - they are not constrained to follow a sequential order, and unconfirmed transactions are stored in a queue. In addition, IOTA is designed in a way that when Tangle adds more nodes, the network will become increasingly efficient and secure.

The IOTA system is proposed to be cheaper, more efficient, and less energy-consuming than traditional blockchain-based systems, as Tangle does not require full node miners.

Who is the founder of IOTA? (History of IOTA)

IOTA was co-founded by David Sonstebo, Dominik Schiener, Dr. Serguei Popov, and Serge Ivancheglo in 2015. It was created as a dedicated distributed ledger. Its main goal is (and still is) to democratize and provide energy for the Internet of Things (IoT).

The IOTA network - and its Tangle technology - is designed to provide secure payments and communication without transaction fees, regardless of size. Another benefit of this design is near-instantaneous verification. In theory, the system can verify an unlimited number of transactions per second.

IOTA Foundation

In 2017, initial IOTA investors contributed 5% of total token supply to continue developing the project and create what would later become the IOTA Foundation. Officially established in 2018, the goal of the IOTA Foundation is to support research and development, education, as well as the standardization of IOTA technology.

IOTA Foundation is a member of the International Association for Trusted Blockchain Applications (INATBA) as well as a founding member of the trusted-IoT alliance and the open blockchain initiative for the mobility industry (MOBI).

After a dispute between IOTA co-founders David Sønstebø and Sergey Ivancheglo, Ivancheglo resigned from the IOTA Board on June 23, 2019. On December 10, 2020, the IOTA Foundation’s Board and Supervisory Council announced the official separation from co-founder David Sønstebø.

What makes IOTA unique?

IOTA is a project that has become synonymous with the word “unique” - and its Tangle blockchain technology has spoken to that.

Both the value proposition and business plan of IOTA differ significantly from other blockchain-based cryptocurrencies, which brings both praise and hostility to the project.

What brings value to IOTA?

In terms of value proposition, IOTA derives its value from what it offers to users: feeless transactions, near-instant transaction confirmation, as well as unlimited scalability potential. There are many other benefits from IOTA’s design, such as consuming less energy than most other cryptocurrencies. These features all contribute to the flexibility and extensive functionality found in the IOTA network.

While many of IOTA’s groundbreaking features are considered only “potential” — given that the network is currently underutilized (in terms of the number of users) — MIOTA’s low entry price, coupled with the great features within the network, could be very attractive to investors.

How is the IOTA network secured?

The IOTA network is completely decentralized and theoretically secure. The network ensures the validity and authentication of all data exchanged on the network. The IOTA network is also considered tamper-proof.

How to Use IOTA?

Although IOTA is considered a project that is not widely used at the moment, it has some very interesting use cases.

In January 2018, Taipei and the IOTA Foundation signed an agreement to start using IOTA and its Tangle technology to transform the capital of Taiwan into an advanced smart city. With the ability to operate an entire city, IOTA is a project that can achieve ‘widespread adoption’ at the infrastructure level.

This cryptocurrency is also used by projects such as Elaadnl, Ehealth, Volkswagen, etc. However, although IOTA has some attractive applications in the public, institutional, and industrial sectors, it has not yet been adopted by retail users.

How to choose an IOTA wallet?

Although IOTA is a popular cryptocurrency, it is not as widely supported as other major cryptocurrencies due to its non-blockchain structure. However, there are more wallets for users to choose from. Each user, depending on their needs, must determine which wallet is most suitable for them.

Kriptomat provides a secure storage solution, allowing you to both store and trade MIOTA tokens without much difficulty. Storing your MIOTA with Kriptomat provides you with enterprise-grade security and user-friendly functionality.

Buy and sell MIOTA, or exchange them for any other cryptocurrency, all done within seconds when you store them on our platform.

How is IOTA different from Bitcoin?

IOTA’s solution to Bitcoin’s problems is to eliminate some important concepts and constraints of the blockchain. MIOTA, IOTA’s cryptocurrency, is pre-mined and transactions are confirmed differently than in a blockchain. IOTA developers have proposed a new data structure (a way to organize numerical representations in computer memory) called Tangle.

In Bitcoin, a group of systems running full nodes containing the entire transaction history of a ledger is necessary for confirmation and consensus. This process requires a lot of energy and computation.

In Tangle, there is no requirement for miners to have full nodes. Each new transaction is confirmed by referencing two previous transactions, reducing the amount of time and memory needed to verify a transaction. A simple and easy Proof of Work (PoW) puzzle is added to the transaction as a final step. The two selected transactions are called tips. The IOTA system uses a tip selection algorithm with ‘reliability’ as a measure to approve transactions. Suppose a transaction has been approved 97 times in the past. Then, there is a 97% reliability that a node will approve it in the future.

Regarding the concept of ‘trustworthiness’, it refers to the weight of a transaction. When it moves through the Tangle, a transaction accumulates weight. The weight of a transaction increases with the number of approvals. Once a transaction is confirmed, it is broadcasted to the entire network. Then, an unconfirmed transaction can choose a newly confirmed transaction as one of the tips for self-confirmation.

The method of confirming this transaction is feeless and low-energy, allowing MIOTA to be used on various devices and machines with different energy requirements.

Conclusion

IOTA is a very unique cryptocurrency project, different from the standards in the industry. Investors who are fond of contemplating the future of smart cities and the industrial revolution should definitely consider this project.

Although that hasn’t happened yet, IOTA could become a very attractive payment option for end users due to its feeless, near-instant transactions and its immutability.

You can check the price of MIOTA here.