Canadian Government awards Mavenet blockchain for onchain steel platform

The Canadian government has awarded enterprise blockchain startup Mavennet a procurement contract for the development of an on-chain steel-tracking platform. Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED), a government agency with the mandate to foster technology innovation, published a procurement award on Nov. 12 that will fund the R&D project for six months with CD$169,427 (about US$130,000).

The goal, as set out by ISED, is for Mavennet to build a blockchain proof-of-concept prototype that can track and share real-time data across the supply chain in the Canadian steel industry, which regularly produces well over 10 million metric tons a year.

Mavennet CEO Patrick Mandic said in an interview that with a blockchain to trace live data points and AI to make those patterns meaningful, the system could have ripples across the multi-billion-dollar industry. “Ultimately, you’re collecting a lot of data with new levels of granularity,” he said. “If you’re able to collect information in real time and in a way that you can trust, you’re opening up a world of possibilities for analysis and providing insights to the government.”

If Phase 1 proves successful, Mavennet may be able to receive additional two-year government funding of up to CD$800,000 to continue building a deployment-grade system. It's already pursing similar government contracts around the world, including an oil-tracking platform for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.