Can you tell us about your background?
My name is Nikola Bozic. I arrived in France (from Serbia) in 2014 after completing my engineering studies in Belgrade (Serbia). I completed my master's degree at Central Sup Elec and, for the past three years, I have been working on my PhD, with a thesis in collaboration between Squad and the Paris 6 Computer Science Laboratory, part of Sorbonne University.
The opportunity to have collaborated with Squad over the years has allowed me to work on very challenging topics, and my research is mainly focused on cloud systems, virtualization, and, more recently, blockchain technology.
Can you explain blockchain technology "for dummies"?
In a nutshell, blockchain is a new paradigm, a new system that allows all types of information related to a value creation process to be centralized. To put it simply, until now, all types of transactions were orchestrated by a centralized entity. Blockchain is a technology that distributes this orchestration and makes transactions possible without any kind of conductor. This is essentially what blockchain is: a decentralized transaction and reporting system without unilateral governance.
Does blockchain technology imply that anyone can contribute data?
This was indeed the primary motivation behind blockchain when it was created and the first systems that emerged from it. It is important to remember that blockchain technology is already 10 years old and has evolved since then. Today, several types of systems coexist:
- Anyone can participate in the network and access the data.
- But also a new generation of platforms using blockchain technology that allow us to define who will participate in our network and who will be able to access the data.
So blockchain technology does not necessarily mean public information shared by everyone: it is a technology that can be configured in a private or restricted environment.
What is this new paradigm that blockchain technology implies?
Blockchain is in itself a new paradigm that will radically change business as we know it in many sectors (industry, finance, and even web protocols, etc.).
I will present blockchain in more detail in a MixYourTalent Squad session and present concrete examples[HL1] behind the pure terminology and beyond the emblematic case of cryptocurrencies.
In concrete terms, blockchain technology is being adapted and adopted in many fields of application. That is the beauty of this technology, its appeal and its potential scope. It demonstrates its power to transform the economy, from consulting to engineering.
Today, all cloud providers have integrated blockchain as a service in its own right. This opens up new business opportunities, both for consulting firms, DevOps, technicians, and strategic consulting. The current problem is that blockchain technology remains a relatively unknown "black box." Although we are now in 2019, when we talk about research and the people working in these fields, we see real progress... but when we talk to the general public, it's still 2008, when blockchain was equated with Bitcoin.
One of the biggest ongoing initiatives from a European perspective is educating the general public about what blockchain is and how anyone can benefit from this new technology.
Tell us about the link between blockchain and cybersecurity...
Blockchain is a technology that uses a combination of components that are already well known in terms of encryption and cybersecurity. It already uses technologies such as hash functions, PKI systems, and electronic signatures. It is not so much the encryption part of blockchain that is new, since blockchain uses existing technologies in a different combination adapted to a new system. What is new is the very idea of centralization, which implies that the communication protocol and content are based on it. So, yes, of course, blockchain is closely linked to cloud systems and cybersecurity, because when we hear about a new system, we have to secure the network and think about the possible spread of the system, migration from one system to another, etc. There is therefore a real need for experts in cybersecurity and virtualization in applications using blockchain technology.
In order to function, blockchain technology must be shared by many users. Is this a new vision of data management?
Yes, that is the greatest innovation of this technology and what makes it so powerful. Blockchain is really moving towards open-source communities, which I think is the right direction because it allows all stakeholders to participate collectively. The idea is to create a large network integrating all players, a combination of the public and private sectors. So, yes, consulting helps with governance in order to understand how to adapt blockchain; there is a huge new market. It is estimated that there are 3,000 startups gravitating around the blockchain universe, with an average valuation of €5 million. There are more than a thousand business angels involved in this field... we are really talking about a huge emerging market that offers opportunities for high-tech companies, startups, and consulting... it is a true combination of talents between new technologies and experts in existing web and cloud technologies; a combination that also combines technical expertise and consulting in terms of management. It is indeed essential to understand the technology and visualize how it can be used and employed in the best way possible. We really need to think about the new consulting opportunities that blockchain opens up for companies, whether in governance or in providing support on the choice of blockchain technology to be used.
Any advice for a young digital consultant?
I am really passionate about this technology, and my advice is that you can start by learning a lot from OpenSource, so don't hesitate to use it. There are some very high-level online courses available on the Internet. What's interesting is that universities in Europe are now incorporating blockchain into their curricula. The idea of the blockchain community is also to educate the general public, so there are many publications and conferences to participate in. I encourage everyone to take an interest in this technology, which is a real game changer and will be a real area of expertise where there will be many jobs.
