At least every company is preserving to hop on the blockchain bandwagon. Some most famous auto-manufacturers are BMW, Ford, GM, Renault and a string of tech partners (including Bosch and IBM). They have now formed the Mobility Open Blockchain Initiative. It is a group that hopes to use the distributed, decentralized ledger technology of blockchain across many aspects of your experience, even when you’re not driving. They are hoping to create standards in order to allow for secure payments for everything from self-driving car-hailing to congestion charges to ridesharing.

It might be useful for car-to-car data sharing. And behind the scenes, blockchain would be useful for vehicle ID (such as tracing stolen cars or collision histories) and be bolstering the supply chain. The move is undoubtedly super-trendy, and there’s no firm timeline for when any blockchain technology might show up in cars. However, this could have some very tangible real-world benefits. As there would be fewer (if any) gatekeepers, this could reduce the cost of the services you use without compromising on security — a trip in a self-driving taxi might be slightly more affordable.