Blockchain startup looks to connect offline

CryptoFuse, a startup developing hardware that allows for both online and offline blockchain transactions, recently began setting up shop in D.C.

With a presence at WeWork White House and 1776, the company is looking to get involved in the District’s tech community.

Blockchain, which has become a much-discussed technology in recent years, functions as a distributed network in which a database – or extended file – is shared across millions of devices around the internet. Each device helps work with the database as well as holds a part of the larger file without storing it in a single location, thereby making it more secure.

CryptoFuse, led by 37-year-old CEO and founder Andrew Couch, is based around three hardware tools the CryptoFuse, the ShortFuse, and the QuickFuse – which have reached the prototype stage.  The products themselves are centered around both conventional online blockchain processes as well as storing data on the devices in offline environments, allowing for the processes to be stored and then resumed when the device is back online and has Internet connectivity again. This, in turn, can provide uninterrupted blockchain functionality in work environments where internet connectivity could be sporadic, such as within a large warehouse, or in international regions where connectivity and reliability might be sparse at best. Couch went on to state that beyond hardware sales, the company will look to transaction fees as an income stream. The eight-employee company is self-funded to date, and also has an office in Orange County, Calif.

Where the new D.C. office is concerned, Couch said that its proximity to the government will “help build relationships with regulators” as well as “tap into the energy” of the District. What seems critical to CryptoFuse now, according to Couch, is the idea of community building, especially in the District. As such, the company is looking to put together monthly mixers bringing together representatives from the government, business and dev worlds. Going forward, Couch is also interested in connecting with computer science students in the area.