About OriginTrail (TRAC)

TRAC is the Ethereum-run utility token for supply chain-focused OriginTrail, which considers itself to be the world’s first fully decentralized knowledge graph network.

(Also known as a semantic network, and a key underpinning of artificial intelligence, a knowledge graph is a data storage term of art to mean a type of technology that integrates complex data sets into a graph structure, or representative topology, connecting layers of topics/subjects/workflows).

OriginTrail's founders like to refer to their multi-chain protocol as "Google for supply chains."

Boiled down, TRAC is a sprawling, here-there-everywhere collection of network nodes holding/sharing data.

OriginTrail says its protocol allows companies throughout the global supply chain to share data securely, end-to-end, via a graph network monitored by AI and oracles. The network is designed to be a neutral interconnection hub for the Web3 era.

The network's TRAC token pays for data processing and storage; it is a glue that bonds parties to a shared integrity, keeping data immutable. The concept of a knowledge graph placed in the context of Web 3.0 connotes a kind of metaverse sensibility, bridging the physical world to the digital world through a single connected reality.

OriginTrail, in the context of supply chain management, is unique in that it’s a multi-chain protocol, as opposed to VeChain, which is its own chain, according to a CrossTower analyst.

To encourage supply chain participants to trust each other and share data, the OriginTrail ecosystem supports universal standards for data exchange (interoperability) connecting, rather than replacing, legacy IT systems, with blockchain, ensuring data integrity.

Three years ago, OriginTrail was integrated into the Oracle Blockchain Cloud Service, a move aimed at tearing down supply chain data silos, and promoting interoperability.

OriginTrail/TRAC is used for factory audit trail creation by some giant companies/government agencies, including Home Depot, Walmart, Target and the U.S Department of Homeland Security, according to OriginTrail.

One noteworthy, recently announced partnership: the Supplier Compliance Audit Network (SCAN) which built, in conjunction with BSI Group, a Trusted Factory solution which will integrate OriginTrail protocol, Cointelegraph has reported. The earliest version of the OriginTrail solution, first deployed in the food industry, was described in a white paper laying out a vision for an ecosystem based on token economy with "direct relations between users and network nodes free of arbitrary fees."

A token sale was held in January 2018. The OriginTrail Decentralized Network (ODN) mainnet went live in December 2018, according to the network.

Participating in and contributing to the OriginTrail ecosystem means publicly committing to more transparent, collaborative, fair and trusted supply chains.

Crypto research requires a review of the people involved in any given project. Sometimes they hide behind pseudonyms. Not OriginTrail. Co-founders Tomaž Levak, Žiga Drev and Branimir Rakic have been openly doing interviews and appearing at conferences, such as events connected with the Walmart Food Safety Collaboration Center's "Innovation Pipeline" in Beijing.

Trace Labs, the core development company behind OriginTrail, has publicized the expansion of its advisory board. Among the new board members: Professor Bob Metcalfe, an early Internet pioneer who is known for his Metcalfe’s Law, and as the inventor of the Ethernet; Dan Purtell, Group Director of Innovation at BSI; Greg Kidd, an early investor in Twitter, Coinbase, and Square; and Aaron Bradley, knowledge graph strategist at Electronic Arts (EA).

During 2021, supply chain disruptions choked the global economy, with shipping backlogs and shortages. Going forward, continued innovations surrounding supply chain management will take a center stage within the knowledge economy, which is driving Big Tech and multinational corporations generally, and which is viewed as a key driver of mass blockchain adoption.

How the price of TRAC is determined

TRAC’s total supply is 500 million, pre-mined, CoinGecko said.

TRAC's current market capitalization is $400 million, making it the 194th-largest digital asset.

In the case of creators publishing data to network, they use TRAC to compensate the data holding nodes for varying time periods/resources, such that the exact value of TRAC for each data upload is dependent on market forces. The TRAC reward is locked in the smart contract until the job’s completion, where it is paid out to the data holder. Users can monetize their data in multiple ways by selling their data, or providing limited access to certain individuals, or fractionalizing ownership over data to different parties, the network said.

What the bulls are saying about OriginTrail (TRAC)

• "The token is based on a solid project with a track record of five years," said Cryptopolitan. "There are so many less useful projects out there with higher valuations. So we can confidently assume a better future for TRAC in the coming time."
• "A hidden gem, an oracle for supply chain data," said Blockchain Bullz. "There's no reason it can't get to a $1 billion market cap."
• Supply chain enhancements are touted as a significant blockchain use case, but skeptics have pointed to the age-old "garbage in/out" problem with data management. OriginTrail seems to have solved that problem, according to Ivan on Tech. 

What the bears are saying about OriginTrail (TRAC)

• TRAC's on-chain metrics collected by Intotheblock as of mid-December were classified as "mostly bearish."
• TRAC partnerships need to translate to token usage. Any use case that does not translate to token use/burn means nothing for investors, said Twitter's StealthNine.
• BTC will go past $50 and TRAC will still be under $1.10, said Hulk Trader.