Dfinity, the Swiss foundation behind the Internet Computer Protocol (ICP) blockchain, has signed a letter of intent (LOI) with the Cambodian Ministry of Industry, Science, Technology and Innovation at TOKEN2049, where both parties agreed to conduct research, training and startup ecosystem support for smart city infrastructure.
The definition of a smart city is somewhat vague, but emphasizes the use of advanced information and communication technologies. Dfinity has already established operations in Cambodia as a partner in a United Nations Development Program pilot project, providing services for its digital universal trusted certificate system.
Decentralized computing across the country
The letter of intent is part of Dfinity’s ongoing efforts to support the sharing of sovereign cloud technology with governments and international organizations. Dominic Williams, founder and chief scientist of Dfinity, said:
“We are excited and proud to further collaborate with the forward-thinking Cambodian government. The Internet Computer and ICP technologies will play a key role in supporting Cambodia’s digital transformation... and will help Cambodia achieve its mission of building secure smart cities.”
ICP hosts decentralized serverless computing, so ICP users do not need cloud hosting services such as Amazon Web Services, and with software hosted on-chain, the network claims to be immune to cyber attacks.
In March of this year, Dfinity announced the first demonstration of artificial intelligence running on ICP in the form of a smart contract.
Cambodia eyes leadership in tech
“By incorporating blockchain technology into our national infrastructure projects, we aim to develop solutions that will not only accelerate our smart city initiatives, but also strengthen the broader digital economy,” said Try Sophal, director general of Cambodia’s Ministry of Industry, Science, Technology and Innovation (MISTI).
“MISTI’s mission is to position Cambodia as a regional leader in emerging technologies,” added Sophal.
Cambodia’s smart city ambitions date back to at least 2019, when Singaporean blockchain startup Limestone Network launched a smart community project in the capital, Phnom Penh. The project was originally scheduled to be completed in 2022, but it is unclear whether it will be completed on schedule.
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