Blockchain on Campus: Universities Finding Their Role as Researcher and Promoter

There are an increasing number of universities that have been opening groups, centers and laboratories dedicated to research into cryptocurrencies, and despite being young themselves, these promise to significantly advance the evolution of cryptocurrencies and blockchains.

Stanford University launched its very own Center for Blockchain Research in June, with its primary aim being to "Support the thriving ecosystem by developing new technologies needed to advance the field." However, it will also operate "An extensive education and outreach program," which - among other things - will include the Stanford Blockchain Conference, public blockchain seminars, as well as courses for Stanford students and a free MOOC for everyone else.

In the U.K., the University of Edinburgh launched its own laboratory in February 2017, in conjunction with Hong Kong-based blockchain R&D firm IOHK. While the lab revolves mostly around "Cutting-edge, industry-inspired research in the area of distributed ledgers and their applications," it too was formed as "Part of a global effort of IOHK to engage in basic research and academic outreach in the area of blockchain services."

In Denmark, the IT University of Copenhagen opened the European Blockchain Center in June 2017, aiming to "Generate and communicate knowledge about blockchains, which will happen in collaboration with other academic institutions as well as both private and public companies." Given that one of its central aims is to communicate about blockchains, it's no surprise that - in addition to its own research into smart contracts and KYC optimization - it also runs its own podcasts and its own introductory summer school on crypto in conjunction with the university's business school.

One member of the European Blockchain Center is Associate Professor Omri Ross, who's also a member of Copenhagen's HIPERFIT research group.

As for the European Blockchain Center itself, Ross explains that "The focus has been increasingly on socio-economic implications of disintermediation. Here, significant thought and effort have gone into establishing research areas in [such] topics as the decentralized business model and distributed governance." And what such a broad focus highlights is that research into cryptocurrencies and blockchains is remarkably interdisciplinary, drawing in a wide variety of disciplines and underlining how crypto is likely to have an impact in multiple areas of life.

Such relationships are present elsewhere in the world: In Russia, a blockchain research lab based at the National University of Science and Technology in Moscow was actually opened by Vnesheconombank - a state-owned bank.

In Hong Kong and Australia, a research lab launched jointly by the Hong Kong Polytechnic University and Monash University was supported by CollinStar Capital, a crypto-focused asset management and investment company that has also invested in Purdue University's Blockchain Lab.

At the beginning of June, this problem was underlined when Ripple donated $50 million to 17 research institutions as part of its University Blockchain Research Initiative.

Because blockchain platforms are meant to operate in a distributed way and serve a distribution of needs, crypto research will necessarily be 'distributed' in how it serves the stakeholders involved, otherwise they would struggle to succeed.