PwC Herald Talks: Kiwi tech firm Centrality talks data ownership

Centrality founder and chief executive Aaron McDonald says companies that control or own information will have the power. Photo / supplied

Personal ownership of data and information will be the way of the future, particularly given the current climate, according to Aaron McDonald.

The founder and chief executive of blockchain technology company Centrality is the keynote speaker at tomorrow's PwC Herald Talks event focused on the future of money.

McDonald, who is also the chief technology officer of Swiss crypto investment bank Blockhaus, founded Centrality in 2016 as a way to help technology firms and start-ups get their ideas on the blockchain ecosystem.

Blockchain is a decentralised peer-to-peer ecosystem in which verification of transactions is done collectively rather than through an intermediary like a bank.

The difference, McDonald said, was users on blockchain were the sole owners of their data, compared with most other platforms where a third party such as Facebook, had control of the information and was responsible for keeping it.

"We're in a very lucky place in New Zealand where we have a relatively stable economic environment and government, but that's not the same everywhere around the world.

"Increasingly with things like machine learning and artificial intelligence progressing at the pace it is, the companies that control or own that information will have the power," he said.

"These kinds of things are already showing up in the political scene in other countries where information ownership is creating outcomes that possibly society isn't prepared for, or wants, so that ownership is going to be increasingly important."

Centrality's success has seen it raise the equivalent of US$80 million ($110.5m) in virtual currency that could be used in an online marketplace.

The currency tokens called CENNZ sold out in just six minutes to investors. This was on top of a pre-sale last year which netted US$15m for the company.

McDonald said the company was aiming to reduce the barriers so customers could use the platform without needing to understand all of the technology behind it.

"We took a step back and said okay let's stop being purist and start thinking about the practical realities of getting a real user to interact with this system on a daily basis, and you almost have to take the technology away," McDonald said.

"So users need to be able to pick up applications [like this] and start using them like you would email, with that same kind of superficial level of knowledge but without caring too much because they're engaged in the benefits of it rather than the technology behind it."

The company has about 100 staff across its offices globally, and has a focus on international markets where cryptocurrency and blockchain are more well developed.

McDonald attributed a lot of the company's success to great people and product, but said keeping the technology accessible for everyone so it wasn't too complex to use, had been key to its expansion.

Aaron McDonald is the keynote speaker at tomorrow's PwC Herald Talks in Auckland focusing on the Future of Money.

Wednesday 21 March, 7am – 9am at SKYCITY Theatre (sold out)
Thursday 22 March, 7am – 9am at The Piano, Christchurch.
Get your tickets now at iTicket