US Homeland Security Funds Anti-Forgery Blockchain Projects in Latest R&D Round

The five companies will use DLT in food tracing, essential worker licensure, overhauling the Social Security Number system and tracking e-commerce.

AccessTimeIconOct 9, 2020 at 4:43 p.m. UTC
Updated Aug 19, 2021 at 4:52 a.m. UTC

Presented By Icon

Election 2024 coverage presented by

Stand with crypto

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's research and development wing, the Science & Technology (S&T) Directorate, on Friday awarded $817,712 in total to five blockchain startups in a bid to reimagine the federal government's anti-forgery and counterfeit prevention operations.

From creating digital Social Security Number alternatives to building e-commerce tracing systems, the winners have up to six months to develop blockchain proofs-of-concepts for DHS' client agencies. S&T's Silicon Valley Innovation Program (SVIP), essentially an equity-free tech accelerator within S&T, is funding the round.

  • Bitcoin Mining in the U.S. Will Become 'a Lot More Decentralized': Core Scientific CEO
    13:18
    Bitcoin Mining in the U.S. Will Become 'a Lot More Decentralized': Core Scientific CEO
  • Binance to Discontinue Its Nigerian Naira Services After Government Scrutiny
    05:10
    Binance to Discontinue Its Nigerian Naira Services After Government Scrutiny
  • The first video of the year 2024
    04:07
    The first video of the year 2024
  • The last regression video of the year 3.67.0
    40:07
    The last regression video of the year 3.67.0
    • Spherity GmbH received $145,000 to develop a "digital twin" record of inbound e-commerce packages. The German company's system would share critical information among parties without compromising privacy, SVIP said. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is the client.
    • New Zealand-based MATTR LIMITED will build U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services a digitally issued essential worker license using its $200,000 prize. S&T officials said COVID-19's work shutdowns have proven the need for distributed, verifiable digital credentialing systems that get essential staff back to work.
    • Mesur.IO will retrofit its Earthstream environmental analytics platform for CBP's food-tracing efforts. With $193,612, the North Carolina firm plans to identify and track toxins, pathogens and other undesirables across the supply chain.
    • SVIP veteran SecureKey Technologies has now won an additional $193,000 to create a digital alternative to the Social Security Number that gives its holder full informational control. DHS is already under departmental order to phase out the highly insecure SSN, and Toronto-based SecureKey could play a part in that.
    • Mavennet Systems, also an SVIP regular, this time won $86,100 to digitally trace natural gas shipments between the U.S. and Canada, its home country. CBP said it aims to use Mavennet's Neoflow platform to give regulators a better look inside cross border gas exchanges in accordance with the USMCA trade agreement.
    • S&T said it chose the five winners from 80 applicants who competed for funding following the directorate's June industry day.

    Disclosure

    Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information have been updated.

    CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. CoinDesk has adopted a set of principles aimed at ensuring the integrity, editorial independence and freedom from bias of its publications. CoinDesk is part of the Bullish group, which owns and invests in digital asset businesses and digital assets. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive Bullish group equity-based compensation. Bullish was incubated by technology investor Block.one.


    Learn more about Consensus 2024, CoinDesk's longest-running and most influential event that brings together all sides of crypto, blockchain and Web3. Head to consensus.coindesk.com to register and buy your pass now.