Recode reports the social media giant is jumping on the blockchian bandwagon by creating a new unit dedicated entirely to blockchain. The goal of the newly created internal group – which will be headed by former Messenger lead David Marcus – is to leverage blockchain technology across the Facebook (NASDAQ:FB) platform.
“After nearly four unbelievably rewarding years leading Messenger, I have decided it was time for me to take on a new challenge,” Marcus, who also has experience at Coinbase – a cryptocurrency exchange – and PayPal, said in a post on his personal FB page. “I’m setting up a small group to explore how to best leverage Blockchain across Facebook, starting from scratch.”
According to Recode, the Menlo Park, Calif-based company has yet to announce why it decided to start exploring blockchain. Some speculate FB could use the technology for payments or to verify someone’s ID.
Obviously, it’s not hard to understand the reasoning behind the move. After all, blockchian is the cryptographic engine behind renowned cryptos such as Bitcoin and Ethereum. Additionally, the leading software platform for digital assets besides being immensely popular as a result of its decentralized attributes, is already in an irreversible technological advancement trend that keeps disrupting established industries.
News of Facebook’s blockchain involvement follows statements from CEO Mark Zuckerberg made back in January where he made known his interest in starting to look into decentralizing technologies.
“I’m interested to go deeper and study the positive and negative aspects of these technologies, and how best to use them in our services,” Zuck said, referring to cryptocurrencies.
Recode said Marcus, who in his new role will report to Facebook CTO Mike Schroepfer, is expected to be joined by James Everingham, Head of Engineering at Instagram, and Kevin Weil, VP of Product at Instragram.
Needless to say, it’s way too early to know whether Facebook’s idea of starting a team intended specifically for exploring blockchain technology will prove a good one. However, one thing is obvious: the move proves the company is taking the exploration of blockchain just as seriously as that of mobile phone apps or artificial intelligence tools.
At last check, Facebook stock was up 81 cents, or 0.49%, at $183.50.
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