New patent reveals Microsoft's plan for a cryptocurrency with an innovative approach to mining

The year 2017 saw a rise in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Etherum, not for trading but also to be used for other applications as well. Since then many companies have jumped on the cryptocurrency bandwagon and it looks like Microsoft is going to be the latest addition.

Microsoft has filed a patent titled “Cryptocurrency system using body activity data” which was published yesterday. The patent talks about a new cryptocurrency that uses body activity data for mining allowing users to mine the currency without needing an expensive mining rig. This is an innovative method which hasn’t been explored enough but it might just work for Microsoft.

Some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure may use human body activity associated with a task provided to a user as a solution to“mining” challenges in cryptocurrency systems. For example, a brain wave or body heat emitted from the user when the user performs the task provided by an information or service provider, such as viewing advertisement or using certain internet services, can be used in the mining process.

Instead of massive computation work required by some conventional cryptocurrency systems, data generated based on the body activity of the user can be a proof-of-work, and therefore, a user can solve the computationally difficult problem unconsciously. Accordingly, certain exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure may reduce computational energy for the mining process as well as make the mining process faster.

Systems, methods, and hardware aspects of computer readable storage media are provided herein for a cryptocurrency system using human body activity data. According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, a server may provide a task to a device of a user which is communicatively coupled to the server. A sensor communicatively coupled to or comprised in the device of the user may sense body activity of the user.

Body activity data may be generated based on the sensed body activity of the user. A cryptocurrency system communicatively coupled to the device of the user may verify whether or not the body activity data satisfies one or more conditions set by the cryptocurrency system, and award cryptocurrency to the user whose body activity data is verified.

Examples are implemented as a computer process, a computing system, or as an article of manufacture such as a device, computer program product, or computer readable medium. According to one aspect, the computer program product is a computer storage medium readable by a computer system and encoding a computer program comprising instructions for executing a computer process.

This summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a simplified form that are further described below in the Detailed Description. This summary is not intended to identify key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter.

– Microsoft

In case you didn’t know what mining is then Microsoft has put together a detailed explanation.

A blockchain is a data structure that stores a list of transactions and can be thought of as a distributed electronic ledger that records transactions between source identifier(s) and destination identifier(s). The transactions are bundled into blocks and every block (except for the first block) refers back to or is linked to a prior block in the blockchain. Computer resources (or nodes, etc.) maintain the blockchain and cryptographically validate each new block and the transactions contained in the corresponding block.

This validation process includes computationally solving a difficult problem that is also easy to verify and is sometimes called a“proof-of-work”. This process is referred to as“mining”. The mining may be a random process with low probability so that a lot of trial and error is required to solve a computationally difficult problem. Accordingly, the mining may require enormous amounts of computational energy.

– Microsoft

It’s not clear if Microsoft’s new cryptocurrency will be based on Blockchain or if Microsoft plans to create their own framework. Currently, almost all popular cryptocurrencies are based on Blockchain. Moreover, patents don’t always mean real products and at it’s hard to say if cryptocurrency is something that Microsoft might be interested in going forward.

Via WindowsUnited