Socio-Technical Systems Lab (STSL)

Visit to Arizona State University Cements Collaboration Opportunities for Blockchain Research

November 24, 2019
Dr. Khaled Salah, Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, at ASU Blockchain Research Lab

KU’s Dr. Khaled Salah, Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, and Dr. Raja Jayaraman, Associate Professor of Industrial Systems and Engineering, have returned from a visit to the Arizona State University’s Blockchain Research Lab, where they met with faculty, students, and business executives to discuss potential areas for Blockchain-related research collaboration between Khalifa University’s Digital Supply Chain and Operation Management (DSO) Research Center and ASU’s Blockchain Research Lab.

Dr. Salah and Dr. Jayaraman toured the ASU Blockchain Research Lab and learned about the Lab’s ongoing research projects in Blockchain-enabled supply chain management, Blockchain-based energy trading, and BAAS (Blockchain as a Service) IoT solutions.

They introduced the faculty of the ASU Supply Chain Management Department and researchers of the ASU Blockchain Research Lab to Khalifa University and the research projects being carried out at the DSO Research Center, which was launched in July 2019 to conduct research in supply chain analytics, digital operations management and the future of work in digital enterprises.

The KU professors met with Dr. Dragan Bosocovic, Research Professor and Director of the Blockchain Research Lab, and Dr. Todd Taylor, Professor of Practice in the ASU Supply Chain Management Department and founder of the Blockchain Research Lab, who is also a member of the DSO Research Center’s steering committee.

The productive meeting included discussions with ASU industry partners Dash and ChainRider, who are affiliated with the University’s incubator program, called Skysong Innovations, which brings together industry, faculty, and research students to support the commercialization of Blockchain-related research being carried out at ASU. SkySong offers opportunities for companies whose business objectives would benefit from a strong connection with ASU’s entrepreneurial and research-based initiatives. Dr. Salah found the business model particularly inspiring, noting that it created mutually beneficial partnerships and robust university innovation ecosystem.

Dash and ChainRider developed Blockchain platforms with numerous potential applications, including digitalizing land records and automating the registration of title deeds. Dr. Salah and Dr. Jayaraman received training on the ChainRider platform, and discussed ways for the DSO Research Center to implement the platform in their research.

Developing opportunities for further collaboration between the two research centers was a top priority during the professors’ visit. They invited a PhD student from ASU to visit KU for one week to lay the foundation for the development of various blockchain-based solutions. While Dr. Salah was invited to participate in the 2020 Hyperledger Global Forum, taking place in Phoenix, Arizona, in March 2020. The professors also discussed different projects for collaboration, including Blockchain solutions in healthcare, energy trading, M2M economy, and IoT management.

Forging strong collaborations with leading academic institutions and industries is key to achieving impactful research, and the members of the DSO Research Center are eager to leverage these critical connections and bring more skills, talent, and experience to their center. Arizona State University has been ranked as the #1 in the U.S. for Innovation, according to US News and World Report for the past five years in a row. It, therefore, has much to offer the DSO Research Center in its mission to become an internationally recognized center in the digital transformation of supply chains and analytics-driven management.

Erica Solomon
Senior Editor
24 November 2019