IBM built the smallest computer in the world, which is even smaller than a grain of salt and represents a device with enormous possibilities. The IBM creation will be presented today during the IBM Think 2018 conference.
Embedded in what IBM describes as “5 in 5”, referring to five technologies that can change our lives in the next five years (blockchain, cross-linked cryptography, oceanic purification by robots, artificial intelligence, and quantum computing), the IBM smallest computer in the world doesn’t intend to replace conventional computer systems.
The smallest computer in the world has low production costs and is self-sufficient
According to the last information regarding this device, the IBM microcomputer has a production cost of just 10 cents and integrates hundreds of thousands of transistors and it is able to analyze, communicate, monitor, and act depending on the information it gets.
With a size of only 1×1 millimeters, the IBM smallest computer is even smaller than a grain of salt. Even more, the device is a self-contained system with its own SRAM memory, a communications system based on an LED element and a photodetector, and a photovoltaic cell to provide the necessary energy.
Therefore, not only that it is small, but is also self-sufficient.
The connections between IBM microcomputer and blockchain technology
However, the IBM’s idea behind this tiny device is to open the roads towards a new market within the blockchain technologies. IBM created the device as it was looking for new applications to solve problems in the nowadays products markets.
IBM anticipates its use as a mean to validate genuine products through blockchain process techniques, using trust anchors embedded in all types of objects as means of identification.
According to the company, the IBM smallest computer in the world “can help verify that a product has been properly handled through its long path” from its manufacturer to the consumer or distribution centers. IBM will offer more details about its microcomputer and the relation with blockchain technologies during the IBM Think 2018 conference which start today.
