The Pomp Podcast
David Post, Ph.D. Managing Director, IBM Blockchain Accelerator: How to Decentralize a Centralized Network
- David Post, Managing Director at IBM Blockchain Accelerator, discusses how transaction volume is the critical metric for blockchain network success, not underlying technology alone.
- IBM operates three distinct blockchain business models: selling Hyperledger-based technology, providing enterprise services (500+ engagements), and building/owning networks (Food Trust with Walmart, TradeLens with Maersk, WorldWire for currency transfers).
- Smart cities initiatives use technology like sensor networks and congestion pricing to optimize urban services—New York City's proposed congestion pricing applies blockchain-adjacent principles for infrastructure efficiency.
- Private permission networks should start centralized (7–8 on a 0–10 scale) to aggregate transaction volume, then gradually decentralize over time as governance and crypto-economic principles are introduced.
- Blockchain enables B2B multi-sided marketplaces (supplier identity, digital advertising reconciliation, shipping provenance) by standardizing business processes across enterprise ecosystems.
- Most public protocols will fail because they cannot aggregate sufficient transaction volume; fewer than 10 protocols may ultimately succeed, compared to roughly 5–6 dominant internet protocols.