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Swiss Federal Office of Energy shares successful completion of decentralized energy research

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Four years ago, VIA was selected for the world’s first demonstration of decentralized energy analysis, in partnership with leading Swiss utility, Romande Energie, global smart meter manufacturer Landis+Gyr, and Swiss research institute Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts (HSLU).

The research project, known as KnowlEDGE, was driven by a Swiss law that only allows electrical meter data to be gathered once per day at a resolution of 15 minute increments. Similar regulations exist in many other jurisdictions to protect the privacy of individual residential meter owners. Real-time data from meters, however, are widely recognized for their ability to provide valuable insights for grid flexibility and reliability. 

To enable real-time grid analysis and maintain compliance with data protection laws, the Swiss Federal Office of Energy sponsored this first of its kind research. Together, with our industrial and research partners based in Switzerland, we successfully demonstrated the processing of real-time data across multiple Swiss household meters. The processing was never centralized and household data was never sent to the utility. Nevertheless, the results of the decentralized analysis provided valuable insights to enable predictions for grid voltage levels that are necessary to maintain grid reliability. 

You can find the summary results of the research written by the Swiss Federal Office of Energy, here. To learn more about our contributions to the KnowlEDGE project and our commitment to Switzerland, visit our website or contact us at info@solvewithvia.com. 

 

President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology acknowledges VIA’s CEO Colin Gounden for his contributions to report on cyber-physical resilience

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In February, the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) published a 50-page comprehensive report titled, “Strategy for Cyber-Physical Resilience: Fortifying Our Critical Infrastructure for a Digital World.” As described on their official website, PCAST is the “the sole body of advisors from outside the federal government charged with making science, technology, and innovation policy recommendations to the President and the White House.” 

The report, presented directly to the President of the United States, discusses the staggering increase in risks to our cyber and physical systems as they have become deeply intertwined (e.g., electricity, water, communications, among other critical systems) and provides actionable recommendations to protect them.

As our devoted followers know, VIA’s mission is to make communities cleaner, safer, and more equitable. Our experience working with the United States Department of Defense and Department of Energy along with our expertise in cyber and physical systems, caught the attention of Dr. Georgianna (George) Shea, Chief Technologist of Transformative Cyber Innovation Lab Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD). We are grateful Dr. Shea selected VIA for an interview for the PCAST report to gain a deeper understanding of VIA solutions as they relate to the security of our nation. Dr. Shea remarked on her experience working with our team at VIA:

Dr. Georgianna (George) Shea

Dr. Georgianna (George) Shea

“In my role as Chief Technologist at a defense-focused think tank, I constantly seek solutions that address tomorrow’s threats. VIA has been an invaluable partner in this mission. Their deep expertise and collaborative spirit were instrumental in my work with the Foundation for Defense of Democracies’ Transformative Cyber Innovation Lab.

One aspect of VIA’s work that has particularly impressed me is their exploration of web3 technologies, such as zero-knowledge proofs. Through our partnership with VIA, we have witnessed the potential of secure data sharing among various stakeholders while maintaining compliance with stringent privacy regulations. This perfectly aligns with our mission to advocate for advanced solutions that bolster national security.

I extend special gratitude to VIA’s CEO, Colin Gounden, for contributing to the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology report titled ‘Strategy for Cyber-Physical Resilience: Fortifying our Critical Infrastructure for a Digital World.’ Additionally, I commend Haden Snyder for his forward-thinking approach to implementing some of the report’s recommendations through secure technical means.”

In addition to the interview, we’re also appreciative of the opportunity to review and provide feedback during the writing process for this authoritative report.

VIA is acknowledged among numerous other highly reputable organizations including the National Security Agency, the Department of Defense, the Department of Energy, Idaho National Laboratory, and many more. For those of you who are equally as committed to cybersecurity in critical infrastructure as we are, and are interested in discussing this topic further, send a message to us at info@solvewithvia.com. Let’s work together to protect and improve the lives and livelihoods of our fellow citizens.

Download the PCAST report and be sure to check out the last page for a special acknowledgement.

U.S. Department of Energy’s national lab concludes VIA’s software has the potential to become the industry standard to help EV fleet managers meet decarbonization goals

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The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) research lab, Idaho National Laboratory (INL), known for their nationwide leadership in electric vehicle (EV) batteries and extensive multi-decade research on charger reliability, conducted a rigorous evaluation of VIA’s carbon tracking proofs and confirmed it has the ability to become an industry standard in helping EV fleet managers meet decarbonization goals.

In a recently published article by INL, “The proof is in the software,” INL’s team discussed in detail how the evaluation reviewed VIA’s mathematics (zero-knowledge proofs), code, and working software, and concluded:

“The mathematical approach and the software worked, and it has potential to become an industry standard for providing credible, verifiable, and privacy-sensitive carbon data.“

The DOE is interested in cyber secure ways of verifying data used to accelerate the transition to clean energy. INL was appointed by the DOE as the laboratory of choice to evaluate how well VIA’s software works to verify sensitive carbon data during charging events without revealing private data such as EV charging time, date, location, and owner. Speaking of the process, VIA’s CEO Colin Gounden said:

“Working with INL on this evaluation was an exceptional experience for us at VIA. Not only did they have expertise in zero-knowledge proofs, they asked thoughtful questions and were very responsive. Validating that VIA has the potential to become one of the most trusted sources for verifying carbon data while keeping information private and secure, has been invaluable.”

VIA is currently working with large fleets in the U.S. and Switzerland, totaling more than 54,000 vehicles. VIA aims to expand the number of fleets to help EV managers worldwide meet their decarbonization goals.

If you are interested in learning more about the DOE evaluation, carbon verification, or how we can help your team achieve decarbonization goals, contact us!

VIA showcased during GAI Insights’ Learning Lab live stream

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GAI Insights, an analyst firm helping AI Leaders achieve results with GenAl, invited VIA’s CEO Colin Gounden as a special guest on their Learning Lab series. The weekly series covers use cases of GenAI and showcases new and exciting projects in the space.

After meeting at MIT as judges of a recent competition, Paul Baier, the CEO and principal analyst at GAI Insights, asked Colin to come on the weekly series to discuss the technologies VIA is using, more specifically, Mistral, and give a demo of VIA’s askJARVIS application.

During Colin’s portion of the nearly 60 minute session, he gives an overview of VIA’s mission and how that shaped where our company is today in terms of data privacy:

“Data is often too restricted, too tightly held. As we started to work more with the Air Force, Space Force, and the Navy, it became evident that a lot of common visualization tools were good for unsecured data, but not at a high level of classification.”

Colin goes on to give a detailed, 26-minute demo of VIA’s askJARVIS application, which solves just that, visualizations for highly sensitive data. There were exceptional questions asked throughout the demo ranging from which LLM we use, GPUs vs. CPUs, and his expert opinion on this topic.

If GenAI for highly sensitive data is of interest to you, this is a recording you don’t want to miss. Watch the video below and also reach out to us to learn more at info@solvewithvia.com.

 

Exclusive: U.S. Navy Cyber Warfare Engineer interviews VIA’s CEO to dive into blockchain’s role in advancing cybersecurity

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October is a time for carving pumpkins, watching football, and celebrating Cybersecurity Awareness Month!

To mark the occasion, the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU), known for fielding and rapidly scaling commercial technology across the U.S. military, published a blog post featuring an exclusive interview with VIA, titled “Capitalizing on Commercial Technology to Promote Cybersecurity across the DOD.”

U.S. Navy Cyber Warfare Engineer and Program Manager at DIU, Jonathan Rogers, traveled across the country to VIA’s HQ in Somerville for the Q&A-style interview with VIA’s CEO, Colin Gounden. During the interview, Colin and Jon talk about the ways blockchain, data security, and decentralization are critical to improved cybersecurity. Check out the video below:

Patrick Gould, Director of DIU’s Cyber and Telecoms (C&T) Portfolio, covered details of the interview in the blog post and shared how VIA and DIU’s relationship started:

“In an effort to shift away from a network-centric paradigm to one that is more data-centric, DIU, Naval Information Warfare Center (NIWC) Atlantic, and Navy PEO Digital and Naval Information Warfare Systems Command (NIWC) issued a solicitation in Fall 2022 for a fully distributed, trustless data execution model leveraging blockchain and other Web3 technologies. Boston-based company VIA was selected for its software-based solution that includes quantum resistant encryption and zero-knowledge proofs, simultaneously enhancing security posture while enabling faster decision making by giving rapid access to essential data for all mission partners.”

For the full blog post that provides more detail on our relationship with the Department of Defense and more specifically, the recent project with DIU, visit the DIU website.

The Westly Group features VIA in recent ESG annual report

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Last month, the Westly Group released their 2022 Annual ESG Report which featured ESG initiatives for all of its portfolio companies. VIA is proud to be included as a case study in this report (on page 23). The case study covers the ways VIA builds core values and inclusion into our company culture, supports critical infrastructure, and chooses mission-aligned customers and partners. Through our values and initiatives, VIA has created a strong, positive workplace:

At VIA, the team believes that a healthy workplace culture is not something that only one person at the company can drive – it needs to be cultivated by every team member from one-on-one settings to large groups. This approach has helped VIA create a close-knit, productive team that represents 20 different nationalities and speaks 14 languages. 

To read the full case study on VIA, see the Westly Group report. If you are interested in learning more about VIA’s company culture, visit our careers page or better yet, contact us!

Tracxn selects VIA for third time on top emerging companies list

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For the third time in three years, Tracxn, a research company well known for “tracking innovative companies and emerging technologies” has recognized VIA as a top emerging company. This year and for the second time, VIA is honored to be featured in the “Emerging Startups of Renewable Energy Tech” list. Coined a “Minicorn,” VIA was selected out of more than 2.7K+ startups in the renewable energy tech space.

Certificate of Appreciation presented by Tracxn

If you would like to learn more about the ways VIA is supporting renewable energy and how we can help your company achieve goals in this area, contact us!

Harvard Belfer Center features VIA in recent report on insights from Blockchain for Impact Workshop

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In late April, VIA’s CEO, Colin Gounden was invited to present on a panel during a workshop at Harvard’s Belfer Center for Arts and International Affairs. The workshop, “Blockchain for Impact Workshop: Perspectives on International Development, Public Goods, and Regenerative Economy” brought together over thirty participants who are considered experts in Web3 to discuss the impact this technology is having today and what it will look like in the future.

After the event, the organizers put together a comprehensive report on all of the findings from the workshop. Colin’s panel, “Collaborative Futures” is included in the six page report, where he spoke alongside Cara LaPointe of the Johns Hopkins Institute for Assured Autonomy, Ramesh Raskar, Associate Professor of Media Arts and Sciences at MIT, and Jared A. Favole, Senior Director of Policy & Communications at Circle (pictured below).

Picture courtesy of Blockchain for Impact Workshop

The panel stressed the need for collaboration across stakeholders to maximize the benefits of blockchain. Colin talked about the importance of preserving privacy while collaborating and how Zero Knowledge Proofs (ZKPs) play a role:

By utilizing ZKPs, VIA strives to address the challenge of preserving the privacy of sensitive data, which often hinders data owners from sharing information freely. The implementation of ZKPs helps facilitate secure and transparent collaboration among stakeholders, furthering the mission of creating positive social and environmental impact.

Coming out of the event, is another! Colin has invited fellow panelist, Jared Favole, to VIA’s Somerville office for a talk on the intersection of blockchain and domestic and foreign policy. The chat will be live streamed on June 27, 2023 from 2:30 – 3:15pm ET. To RSVP for the event, visit the LinkedIn event listing.

If you would like to speak directly with a member of our team about the ways we can help your organization collaborate using Web3, contact us!

Blockchain for Europe and IOTA Foundation feature VIA’s Web3 solutions in recent report

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Blockchain for Europe, a members-only organization that serves “companies driving innovation, integrity, and empowerment through blockchain,” partnered with IOTA Foundation, a non-profit that develops next generation protocols, to write a comprehensive report on the ways blockchain is supporting global sustainability efforts.

The report titled, “An Overview of Blockchain for Climate Action and Sustainability,” includes VIA’s Web3 solutions in a section that covers global climate change initiatives. The authors discuss Skylight and a more recent initiative for EVs:

VIA’s Web3 platform will then also allow verification of the fuel mix of the charge and discharge of EV batteries, incorporating VIA’s zero-knowledge proof (ZKP) to maintain the privacy of sensitive data that currently creates friction for the data owner in the decision to share this information.

For the full report and details written about VIA’s Skylight and ZKPs application for EVs, visit the Blockchain for Europe website. If you would like to speak directly with a member of our team about the ways we can help your organization using Web3, contact us!