California DMV uses Tezo’s blockchain for digital car title transfers

by Arthur · January 30, 2023

The California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) is trying to digitize car titles and title transfers on a private Tezos-built blockchain.

The government agency has partnered with Tezos and blockchain software firm Oxhead Alpha to build a successful proof-of-concept.

The move is part of a wider push to modernize the state’s existing car title systems and increase transparency in title transfers. California’s DMV is responsible for all vehicle registrations and driver’s licenses in the state.

Oxhead Alpha has built a Tezos testnet designed as a blockchain-based replica of the DMV’s current database.

Ajay Gupta, chief digital officer at the California DMV, said the agency wants the test network to be fully functional within the next three months.

In the future, it wants to launch applications such as digital wallets that California citizens can use to hold and transfer NFT (non-fungible token) car titles.

“DMV’s perception of lagging should definitely change,” Gupta said in an interview with Forbes.

Andrew Smith, president of Oxhead Alpha, said the DMV’s blockchain initiative will be used across a wide range of use cases. The central focus will be to modernize existing paper-based systems.

Transaction fraud, where sellers hide problems with a vehicle’s condition in order to sell it to unsuspecting buyers for more than it’s worth, is one such issue the DMV hopes to focus more on.

Currently, sellers can easily move the car to another state to hide defects that will be required on their California titles.

Blockchain-based record keeping, along with increased verification between other states’ DMVs, will make it easier to accurately digitally track a vehicle’s history, Smith said.

On why the Tezos protocol was chosen, Smith said: “The combination of responsible consensus, chain governance and institutional security makes Tezos a great platform to deliver production-ready solutions.”

Last summer, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed an executive order to explore more opportunities to integrate blockchain technology into state agencies.

Newsom commented at the time, “California is a global hub for innovation, and we are setting the state up to succeed with this new technology—stimulating responsible innovation, protecting consumers, and leveraging this technology for the public good.”