IT market of Iceland

Main article: Iceland

2020: The European technology companies which attracted most of all investments in 5 years

The European the technology companies which attracted most of all investments from 2015 to February 2, 2020

2018

As Iceland turns from the platform for mining into a blockchain industry

By the end of September, 2018 it became clear that Iceland gradually turns from the platform for cryptocurrency mining into a blockchain industry. Most of the local gurus working in the field holds this opinion.

The chairman of the Reykjavik data processing center Halldór Jörgensson claims that demand on blockchain technology already began to be displaced from cryptomining towards other ways of use. According to Yorgenson, mad cryptofever of 2017 gradually comes to naught, but, despite it, the wave started by miners continues to advance development of local energy and information technologies. It is considered that the infrastructure of Iceland which developed thanks to influx of miners will become a basis for a blockchain business.

Iceland was very popular the place for production of cryptocurrencies, and on this background local energy and other companies began to create infrastructures on the basis of a blockchain

Iceland became one of the leading countries in development of mining thanks to a natural frigid climate and also abundance of economic renewable energy sources - generally gidro-and geothermal power stations. Iceland became the platform for one of five the world's largest mining firms whose operator Genesis Mining with a huge separation is in the lead in the list of the main Icelandic consumers of the electric power.

In February, 2018 the business development manager of the local power company of HS Orka Johann Snorri Sigurbergsson foretold that mining volume in Iceland within a year will increase twice, and the CEO of HS Orka Asgeir Margeirsson noted that mining industry pushed "the fourth wave technology revolution". According to him, miners are "the main driving force of new industrial revolution which so far and does not think to come to an end", and the cryptocurrency will gradually recede into the background, having given way to other methods of use of blockchain technologies.^[1]

Influx of miners led to IT revolution in Iceland

Influx of miners to Iceland is capable to lead to this technology revolution to which locals will only be glad. In July, 2018 the Bloomberg news agency reported about it.

Director of the Icelandic institute of artificial intelligence Kristinn R. Torisson (Kristinn R. Thorisson) notes that the data processing centers used in the country by miners should become "a basis for the future industrial revolution", developments on the basis of artificial intelligence still require "a huge number of data and computing powers". Despite fugacity of many cryptocurrencies and the related projects, inflow of miners to the country became a basis for development of IT infrastructure which as Icelanders hope, can be used for development of systems of machine learning, release of software for unmanned vehicles and the embodiment of many other plans.

Influx of miners to Iceland is capable to lead to this technology revolution to which locals will only be glad

The business development manager at power plant of HS Orka in Iceland Johann Snorri Sigurbergsson notes that miners will leave, and the data centers involved by them will remain and will become "technology incubators" for future projects of Icelanders. The matter is that cryptocurrency mining requires huge energy costs – both for actually creation of new structures, and for cooling of the huge computers used at the same time. According to preliminary estimates, by the end of the year the Icelandic industry will consume more than 100 megawatts of the electric power. It is no wonder that in such conditions this island country attracts so many miners — in Iceland quite cold, and geothermal and hydroelectric power stations provide rather cheap electric power. For the same reason in Iceland other power-intensive industry — aluminum production is so developed.

However Iceland would not risk to support the industry which will not be able to hold on long enough in the market – bank crisis of 2008 already drove the island into hands of the International Monetary Fund. And the future of cryptocurrencies is not cloudless – after improbable take-off at the end of 2017 almost up to $19,000 for last half a year the bitcoin fell to less than $6,000, and many other cryptocurrencies did not endure crisis at all.

But Iceland needs also to diversify economy to rely less on fishery, tourism and aluminum production. Considering that the country already faced the shortage of workers, Icelanders welcome development of less labor-intensive industries, and exactly here as the chief economist of Kvika bank Kristrun Frostadottir notes, the data processing centers created for miners can play a key role.

Executive commercial director of the data processing center of Advania Data Centers of Gisli of the Territory of Katrinarson, largest in Iceland (Gisli Kr. Katrinarson) announced that their center "accumulated the impressive volume of knowledge of the most effective methods of operation and support of the blockchain systems". Now Advania Data Centers makes use of this knowledge and experience for quality improvement of the services provided to clients, and it means that Iceland at last followed a way which will be able to open before it all advantages of a digital era. Katrinarson noted that Advania Data Centers already cooperates with Stanford University and HP Enterprise — together they develop model of influence of experimental medicines on human heart.

In the world the fourth technology revolution began — Asgeir Margeirsson, the chief executive of power plant of HS Orka says. — And if we do not use the provided chance, then we will quickly lag behind other countries.[2]

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