California DMV will use Tezos to digitize its car title management system 

Shortly after the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and Oxhead Alpha said it had successfully launched the proof-of-concept phase, the DMV, on Jan. 26, said it would begin digitizing car titles and title transfers in a pilot on Tezos, an open-source blockchain. 

The chief digital officer of DMV, Ajay Gupta, said the department aims to change its lackluster disposition to technological innovation by working with partners. The goal is to launch a shadow ledger within the next three months.

The DMV hopes to launch and coordinate digital wallets and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) to hold and transfer car titles. 

California supports crypto

The DMV’s initiative to update its current paper-based system has won the optimism of Oxhead Alpha’s president Andrew Smith. To build on it, Oxhead Alpha will use special sets of smart contracts on the Tezos blockchain. These smart contracts will be private and not visible on the public chain.

Smith believes incorporating Tezos for record-keeping will reduce rampant car thefts, faulty designations on car titles, and so much more. 

This latest development has its roots in the 2020 California state ‘Blockchain Working Group‘ roadmap that highlights the successive engagement of blockchain in critical areas of banking, finance, security, property, and more. 

In May 2022, California Governor Gavin Newsom issued an executive order to oversee and investigate potential blockchain technology interfaces with state governmental agencies.

The current development with DMV and its partners will go live at a tentative time in Q2 2023. It may allow California residents to feature over 30 million registered vehicle titles on NFTs. 

In a few months, the state’s Department of Food and Agriculture will launch a pilot project with a similar value proposition as the DMV’s.