What is IOTA?

IOTA (MIOTA) is a unique distributed ledger technology that deviates from the traditional blockchain structure. Instead, it utilizes a proprietary technology known as Tangle, a system of nodes that confirm transactions. This approach aims to offer greater speeds than conventional blockchains, making it a suitable platform for the rapidly growing Internet of Things (IoT) ecosystem. IOTA's design eliminates the need for miners, which in turn removes transaction fees. This structure aims to provide limitless throughput at minimal expense. IOTA's goal is to become a platform for executing transactions between IoT devices, potentially serving billions of devices.

How does IOTA work?

IOTA operates on a technology called Tangle, which is a Directed Acyclic Graph (DAG). Unlike traditional blockchains that add transactions in blocks, Tangle allows transactions to be added in parallel. This means that the network's size and speed are directly related to the number of users on the platform. When a new transaction is made, it validates two previous transactions from another node. This unique approach eliminates the need for miners, making transactions feeless. To keep the network functioning, a simple Proof-of-Work puzzle is included in the process of validating a transaction.

What are the potential use cases for IOTA?

IOTA seeks to serve a wide range of use cases beyond the IoT ecosystem. The distributed ledger technology could potentially deliver digital identities to all, enabling more transparent and inclusive public services. It could also facilitate usage-based car insurance policies, contribute to the development of advanced smart cities, streamline global trade, and verify the authenticity of products. By enabling efficient, lightweight, real-time micro-transactions without fees, IOTA aims to support a variety of applications.

What is the history of IOTA?

IOTA was initially known as Jinn and was introduced to the public through a crowdsale in September 2014. The network officially launched in 2016. The project was co-founded by Sergey Ivancheglo, Serguei Popov, David Sønstebø, and Dominik Schiener. Over time, the IOTA Foundation has grown, with team members now based across more than 25 countries. The IOTA Foundation, a non-profit organization, was launched in October 2017. It aims to develop the network, and it has established partnerships with various entities, including carmaker Volkswagen and the city of Taipei for smart projects.