The Blockchain in Trucking Alliance (BiTA) announced its launch on August 16, 2017. According to the alliance, their goal is to utilize blockchain tech in the trucking industry — an industry that “has a reputation of being behind the curve on technology.”

“We formed the Blockchain in Trucking Alliance to develop common standards around blockchain applications in the trucking industry, from speeding up transactions to securing data transfers. The technology holds great promise, but to encourage its proliferation, we believe that developing industry standards were paramount. PS Logistics brings a depth of industry experience and full-service logistics knowledge to help our industry innovate with integrity through this new technology,” Craig Fuller, CEO of TransRisk and co-founder of BiTA, said in a statement.

By implementing blockchain technology, BiTA seeks to use triple-entry accounting, which the organization believes would solve some of the industry’s most pressing concerns. Some of the improvements would include immediate payment of drivers upon delivery; transparent and verifiable maintenance records; immediate and self-executing payments for things like fuel and parts; more efficient and fair processes for disputes and arbitrage over freight quality and claims; and immutable carrier history and safety records.

“Blockchain [technology] by its nature is distributed and owned by no single person. It is open source and requires collaboration and standards,” said Fuller. “We are helping to launch BiTA as a way to initiate dialogue between parties in the trucking ecosystem.”

According to the organization, the main difficulty they are currently facing is the integration of blockchain tech into the trucking industry. BiTA encourages the recording of physical transactions (i.e., a load being delivered) in a digital format. The organization believes the evolution of blockchain technology will bridge the gap between “analog and physical transactions to digital transactions and the blockchain.”

The members of BiTA are currently discussing the options and methods of blockchain technology’s implementation.

“We have relationships with many of the Alliance members that are not related to blockchain [technology], but the conversation around blockchain keeps coming up and many of them are exploring blockchain [tech],” said Fuller, “but most are concerned about making significant investments because of the lack of standards and commercial adoption.”

BiTA said, “We are engaging the brightest minds from the most influential leaders in transportation, finance, and technology. BiTA will build the first set of transportation industry–specific blockchain standards and promote the most transformative technology since the internet.”

BiTA has since announced the addition of PS Logistics as their newest member. According to BiTA, PS Logistics, as a charter member along with TransRisk, Triumph Business Capital and McLeod Software, will employ the use of smart technology and uniform performance standards in order to advance the transportation industry. The organization is currently listed as a logistics charter member along with the U.S. Xpress Inc. and Convoy.