Team AiL’s blockchain solution bags top prize in Government of Ireland’s Blockathon

The two-day Blockchain Hackathon, hosted by Ireland’s Department of Public Expenditure and Reform in association with the Department of Finance, brought together a range of technical teams with the aim of identifying and exploring solutions to real problems using blockchain technology.

The Blockathon set out a number of business problems, ranging from medical device tracking in the HSE, to verifying CSO data and tracking State Aid for Enterprise Ireland. A total of nine teams participated in the hackathon and were tasked with developing blockchain-based solutions to enhance the services offered by the Government of Ireland.

The solutions were reviewed under the following four strands; Innovation, Relevance, Solution, and Proof of Concept (POC).

Clodagh McCarthy Luddy and Rosa Devine, from the team AiL, received the top prize of €5,000 for their proposal around the utilization of blockchain technology to timestamp files submitted to the Central Statistics Office (CSO). The tool allowed for data to be tracked and recorded across multiple stakeholders in a transparent and secure manner, thereby helping to reduce errors and increase trust between the CSO and its stakeholders.

In addition, ‘The Buidlers’, a team submitted by ConsenSys, secured second place with their ‘TravelPort’ solution which showed how a decentralised, frictionless toll collection mechanism for vehicles could be achieved. ‘Block Pirates’ claimed the third position for their medical device tracking solution. The second and third placed teams received €2,500 and €1,000 in prize money respectively.

“This weekend’s Hackathon has been a truly rewarding and engaging experience for all involved, and underlines our commitment to develop a deeper understanding of how blockchain may be harnessed to improve current processes, citizen user experience, and cross-sectoral efficiency,” Minister for Finance and Public Expenditure and Reform, Paschal Donohoe TD, said.

“I would like to sincerely thank each team for their participation. They have all played their part in helping to accelerate the pursuit of Irish blockchain innovation.”