Blockchain and artificial intelligence technologies have been gradually making their way to the modern lifestyle. Blockchain is the technology behind cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETC), while most smartphones and gadgets these days utilize some form of AI for their various functions and applications.

Although Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc., also recognized as Tepco, intends to utilize both technologies to manage power usages in its network better. The power company associated with Itochu Corporation, a Japanese trading firm, to create a system that utilizes both blockchain and artificial intelligence to trade power surplus.

The project will take about three years to develop before Japanese households could commence using the system. Tepco and Itochu will be associating with several local governments to develop the system. Both companies require to begin a proof-of-concept by March next year. Each household will get solar panels and AI-based storage batteries from Tepco and Itochu for free. Artificial intelligence will be utilized to determine the amount of power generated and used by a household. It will measure and control the amount of electricity surplus that can be utilized for trading.

Meantime, blockchain will be used to secure “the safety of communication.” The technology has been recognized for being tamper-proof and transparent, making it ideal for systems where security is a top priority. Once the project becomes operational, it would be Japan’s first inter-household surplus electricity trading system.

Similar projects have been rising worldwide. For example, Power Ledger, an Australian blockchain company, joined into a deal with Nicheliving, Perth’s largest developer in the medium-density residential niche. The project aims to create a blockchain-based solar energy trading platform for its residents.

Power Ledger and Nicheliving’s project is comparable to the power trading system envisioned by Tepco and Itochu. Both projects utilize blockchain and AI to trace energy usage and consumption and to let residents trade any surplus with others. Nevertheless, the Australian project seems to be smaller in scale, at least originally. It will include only 62 apartments in SkyHomes development located in Inglewood. There are already plans that the system will be replicated in 10 other developments in the Perth metropolitan area in the future.