Ford, Toyota double down on blockchain as driverless car tech stagnates

Ford and Toyota continue to lead the way when it comes to the development of blockchain-based vehicle technology — at least, according to a slate of recent patent filings from both automotive firms.

Between the two of them, Ford and Toyota filed a total of at least 43 blockchain-related patents in the second quarter of 2024. Overall, the number of patents filed in the industry was fewer in Q2 than in the previous quarter. 

According to data from GlobalData Patent Analytics and Just Auto, however, both Ford and Toyota bucked this trend. Ford increased its filings from just three in Q1 to 14 in Q2, while Toyota improved from 25 patents in Q1 to 29 in Q2. 

The top five companies by blockchain patents filed in Q2 2024, with 29, 14, seven, six and six, respectively. Source: GlobalData Patent Analytics

Blockchain for automotive

The patents filed by Ford, Toyota and other automotive industry companies in the past few months address myriad concerns within the sector. Ford, for example, recently filed a patent that could ostensibly provide immutable providence for vehicle ownership. 

Per the filing, Ford’s system would “manage ownership data of a vehicle … including changes in ownership of the vehicle, via smart contracts that execute automatically in response to real-time event data.”

This would use the blockchain as an immutable ledger recording vehicle title changes as they occur. With this system, it would be trivial to use smart contracts to exchange both the physical commodity itself (the vehicle) and the assets associated with its ownership (the title) in a single, autonomously executed action. 

Related: Ford prepares to enter the metaverse with virtual automobiles and NFTs

Meanwhile, a recently filed Toyota patent indicates the company is exploring the development of an internal blockchain-based system to manage non-fungible tokens (NFTs) related to its vehicles. This system would ensure that vehicles in storage, such as those held by dealers until sale, are accurately reflected on the blockchain ledger. 

Driverless vehicle technology

Toyota and Ford have both shown signs of adjusting their respective strategies to focus on “driver assistance” technologies over autonomous vehicles. A recent gathering featuring hundreds of insiders working in the “driverless car” industry showed that, while optimism remains high among the companies involved, the general tenor of the technology world is that the collective community still hasn’t solved the challenges preventing robotaxis from going public. 

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The shift toward maturer blockchain technology could provide both Ford and Toyota with a competitive advantage going forward, even in the autonomous vehicle sector. One of the main factors being explored by both industries is the impact that blockchain-based city infrastructure could have on driverless vehicle technology. 

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