IOTA: APG | SGA Interaction tests Blockchain application for Smart Cities

To test forward-looking and data-driven business models, APG | SGA participates in a proof of concept of the blockchain startup IOTA. The Internet of Things (IoT) provides data from public space on a data marketplace.

APG | SGA Interaction carries out a test case in the Smart City area. To this end, ten sensors were installed on advertising media of the APG | SGA throughout Switzerland in order to measure the values ​​of temperature, CO2, humidity and barometric pressure. The sensors are connected to the Internet via Swisscom’s LoRa network and regularly deliver data to the APG | SGA server. The aim is to make this data available to interested research institutions, cities or communities. In cooperation with the blockchain startup IOTA, the sensors were connected to a data marketplace where interested parties can purchase the data. In the test phase, the data will be provided free of charge. In the long term, this sensor data should be commercialized. In a successful test, APG | SGA Interaction intends to further expand its network of sensors and support cities and communities as technology partners in the Smart City area.

Temperature, CO2, humidity and barometric pressure can be measured by the sensors that APG has tested at ten locations. The collected data will be offered for free in the test phase via a data marketplace. Should the test be satisfactory, this data could later be sold to research institutions or municipalities, for example.

APG | SGA is part of a group of more than twenty companies worldwide – including Bosch, Deutsche Telekom, Fujitsu and Philips – who work with IOTA on this proof of concept. IOTA is a non-profit organization based in Berlin whose goal is to establish a blockchain standard in the IoT area. IOTA is among the top 10 most valuable cryptocurrencies in the world.

Alex Zimmermann, who is responsible for the implementation at APG | SGA Interaction, explains: “The IOTA data marketplace allows us to easily make our data available to interested third parties and to monetize this data through microtransactions. While the technology is still new and the first applications in the IoT field are being tested, I believe the underlying technology has great potential to create transparency and confidence in trading in IoT data. In the area of ​​smartcity, APG | SGA is developing many other interesting applications in cooperation with cities and municipalities. »