In the Blockchain Wars how does the IOTA's Tangle Take on Ethereum

Introducing IOTA’s Tangle

It was observed that the blockchain craze continues unabated as more companies create new applications faster than ever. Hereby the architecture made popular by Bitcoin and its contemporaries have proven to be a useful tool offering better security and transparency leading to its growing adoption in several industries thereby thanks to its effective communications and the public ledger.

It has to be noted that blockchain’s meteoric rise claims to it that has not been without those speed bumps as there have been for instances, where it has shown the weaknesses that could prove to be major challenges down the road. 

Thereby in an industry such as the Internet of Things, the blockchain’s capabilities have proven to be a particularly strong fit. Thereafter interconnected devices require rapid and transparent verification of data something blockchain’s ledger can handle exceptionally well. It is however found that some have complained that blockchain’s somewhat rigid architecture makes it well suited for robustly storing small amounts of data. Hence this means it’s not truly scalable for things such as big data storage that has come to be synonymous with IoT. 

Here comes this and other concerns that led a team of developers to launch IOTA which is a cryptocurrency platform designed for the demanding IoT ecosystem. Here it is with a twist on the traditional blockchain the company calls Tangle, IOTA claims to provide zero-fee transactions as well as a unique verification process resolving many of the scalability problems associated with Bitcoin. 

Consequently, it is noted that Tangle is attempting to position itself just as a viable alternative to that of the Ethereum blockchain which is till the gold standard for most applications built on the architecture. However, it is regardless of the new Ethereum based solutions for IoT that could render the discussion moot offering a better way for IoT to function. 

The Conflict Between Storage Versus Streaming

It is therefore observed that one of the biggest points of contention between supporters of blockchain and Tangle is the former’s capacity for data storage as the IoT systems create those of massive amounts of data to parse as well as store the most existing of those blockchains simply that cannot handle the load as indeed the technology is meant to offer thereby strong, secure storage that is for a limited amount of the data 
Thereby detractors argue that this philosophy is incompatible with IoT design as well as offers that Tangle delivers a better solution thanks to its take on mining. Herewith IOTA every transaction requires the user to verify two other random transactions creating a tangled ledger reducing the need for mining and theoretically removing any fees. This, therefore, makes it a useful infrastructure for IoT devices requiring micro and Nano transactions to process data being communicated without raising overheads. 

Therefore it is in this sense that however, Tangle architecture does exhibit many notable advantages over the blockchain as it is the transaction processing in the blockchain meaning that much larger block sizes along with volumes that will take significantly much longer to process as well as they must be completely verified to be what is appended to the chain. Therefore an IoT platform could represent prohibitive costs and a lack of functionality due to longer processing times. To state the truth it is however that some blockchain-based applications are presenting the third option while using Ethereum’s blockchain thereby helping to resolve many of these system’s issues with that of data storage.

Hereafter Streamr which is an application based on Ethereum has designed a platform for IoT systems using live data steaming instead of storage. Hereby in the development team's mind, storage in such technology is superfluous on an atomic level as most devices require live data making the best possible decisions as opposed to outdated information. In this context, the Streamr thereby proposes to surely create a marketplace allowing those IoT providers to monetize their live data and create a greater incentive for interconnectedness and participation. Therefore the system even hosts a development environment designed to facilitate the easy creation of IoT applications. 

Finally, There’s An Escalating Race

The truth is that despite blockchain’s popularity there are new solutions constantly emerging that could threaten its recent status in the technology world. So the fact is that hence while Ethereum has in many ways solidified its staying power there remains the most popular development environment for blockchain-based applications, Tangle comes as an intriguing competitor. 

While the fact is the IOTA’s architecture is still young, and while this has made promising steps towards broader adoption as the newer upstart must still contend with Ethereum’s existing infrastructure and first-mover advantage with additionally companies that build on Ethereum remain ahead as they are already compatible with the prevailing systems. Hence the introduction of Live data streaming capabilities for companies like Streamr, as Tangle may face an uphill battle dethroning Ethereum in the IoT sphere as even when considering its custom-built design.