Secure Hardware (TEE)

IoTeX combines tamper-proof hardware and tamper-proof software (blockchain) to enable end-to-end trusted solutions. Secure hardware is tamper-proof as it incorporates trusted execution environments (TEEs), which are un-hackable and isolated enclaves that runs in parallel with the main system of a device/machine. A TEE ensures the confidentiality and integrity of all data and processes run within the TEE -- this method of computing is often termed confidential computing.

If the main system is the White House, a TEE is the bunker underneath it.

Devices today use TEE for highly sensitive processes; for example, mobile devices for FaceID/fingerprints and Ledger wallets for private key storage. When combined with blockchain, TEEs present a way for smart devices to hold their own DID + private key, verifiably sign/submit transactions, and interact peer-to-peer with other users and devices on the blockchain. IoTeX is pioneering this concept of blockchain + TEE in multiple form factors, including edge devices (e.g., Arm TrustZone) and confidential computing servers (e.g., Intel SGX), with the goal of empowering the first decentralized machines that can participate autonomously in the Internet of Trusted Things.

IoTeX has developed the first tamper-proof, blockchain-ready hardware device called Pebble Tracker. Equipped with a TEE and multiple sensors (GPS, climate, motion, light), Pebble Tracker captures/signs information from the real world and converts it into verifiable, blockchain-ready data. This verifiable and trusted data can be used to mint digital assets, trigger actions via smart contracts, train machine learning models, create crowdsourced climate indices, and much more.