IoTeX Launches First Blockchain-Powered Asset Tracking Device Pebble Tracker

On sale to the public for the first time on Crowdsupply, Pebble Tracker creates verifiable data by combining Nordic Semiconductor’s tamper-proof hardware and IoTeX’s tamper-proof software

MENLO PARK, February 17 -- ​IoTeX​, a Silicon Valley company that develops privacy-protecting smart devices, launched for general sale Pebble Tracker, a blockchain-powered smart asset-tracking device integrated with secure hardware from ​Nordic Semiconductor is a first for the IoT industry where all data the device generates is verifiable and owned exclusively by the device’s owner.

Pebble Tracker captures and cryptographically signs real world data, such as location, climate, motion and light, using a built-in secure element, similar to the ones used in smartphones for FaceID and in cryptocurrency hardware wallets for private keys. Pebble Tracker, which employs “security and privacy by design” methodology, incorporates Nordic’s low-power, long-range wireless cellular IoT solution that functions anywhere cellular service is available.

“Tamper-proof hardware meets tamper-proof software. Pebble Tracker unleashes the power of verifiable data and establishes a new standard for trust.” IoTeX CEO Raullen Chai said. “The importance of oracles providing verifiable data has become increasingly evident in areas such as decentralized finance. With Pebble Tracker, we are thrilled to take this to the next level, where brand-new verifiable datasets from IoT devices are brought to the blockchain so that they can be mined to create value in applications and AI models.”

The solution joins together Nordic, a fabless semiconductor company specializing in wireless technology that powers the IoT, and IoTeX’s specialties in trusted hardware, cellular IoT connectivity, and privacy-enhancing services. By utilizing these combined capabilities, Pebble Tracker is set to transform the $16 billion global asset tracking industry.

Applications for Pebble Tracker in the global asset tracking segment are wide-ranging, particularly in industries where continuous monitoring of assets is needed to prevent risks to consumers. For perishable assets like vaccines, fine wine, and seafood, this represents a breakthrough in public trust and confidence in the quality of goods. Pebble Tracker promises to address the more than $400 billion ​in annual losses that result from supply chain errors such as temperature excursions.

“Every IoT application needs security and reliability, and with Nordic and IoTeX technology, Pebble Tracker owners get the best of both worlds,” J. Darren O’Donnell, Director of Sales – Americas, Nordic Semiconductor, said. “The sophisticated combination of reliable hardware and secure software has the potential to transform the asset-tracking industry by providing vital verifiable data from an IoT device.”

To coincide with the product ​launch on Crowdsupply​, IoTeX began an “Ideathon” for developers to create real-world use-cases for the specific benefits of Pebble Tracker’s verifiable data.

Projects underway through the program range from car rental compliance over out-of-state driving and smoking to resolving disputes over the delivery of perishable goods in the supply chain.

The Pebble Tracker announcement comes on the heels of an expansion of the IoTeX ecosystem as the company joined the Executive Committee of the ​China Mobile IoT Alliance​, an invite-only network of more than 1600 enterprise members including China’s leading manufacturers, service providers, and distributors. The Alliance is jointly initiated by China Mobile – the world’s largest telecom service by subscribers and several other global institutions engaged in IoT chips, and the like.

Raullen Chai is available for interviews.

About IoTeX:

Founded as an open source platform in 2017, IoTeX is building the Internet of Trusted Things, where all physical and virtual “things” — humans, machines, businesses, and DApps — can exchange information and value at global scale. Backed by a global team of 30+ research scientists and engineers, IoTeX combines blockchain, secure hardware, and decentralized identity innovations to empower intelligent IoT networks and machine economies. By serving as a decentralized trust fabric for IoT, IoTeX will empower the future decentralized economy by “connecting the physical and digital worlds, block by block”.