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Next-Gen Smart Contracts: PCN Wins Navy SBIR
The Provenance Chain™ Network (PCN) is proud to announce that it was awarded a Navy SBIR N251-068 to define next-generation smart contracts for Department of Defense (DoD) supply chain risk management—a milestone that disrupts legacy blockchain approaches to deliver strategic weapons systems capabilities to DoD by delivering both technological innovation and strategic alignment with modern SCRM and acquisition needs. Why PCN? True Protocol Intelligence. While many blockch
PCN
Sep 2, 20252 min read


The Nature of Commerce Changed Today
By: Dan McMorris, Co-founder of PCN For decades, organizations spent mountains of money on "visibility solutions"—software stacks, dashboards, consultancies promising to finally unlock the secrets of supply, credentialing, and risk. Yet even the biggest names—solutions built on the logic of centralization—have failed to deliver a true, trusted, and holistic story for modern supply chains. Meanwhile, small and medium businesses—the backbone of our economy and industrial base—a
Dan McMorris
Aug 21, 20253 min read


How the GENIUS Act Supercharges Supply Chain Transparency and Workforce Empowerment
The GENIUS Act establishes a robust federal framework for regulated stablecoins—digital tokens pegged to fiat currencies, fully backed by reserves, and issued by qualified entities. This regulatory clarity unlocks a new era of programmable, compliant, and instantaneous payment across supply chains, while also reshaping the relationship between workers and employers to address critical workforce challenges in the US. Why This Matters for The Provenance Chain™ Network (PCN), Ou
PCN
Jul 22, 20253 min read


PCN Completes NIST Phase 1
As we mark the successful completion of Phase 1 of our Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) project with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the Provenance Chain™ Network (PCN) team is proud to share the milestones and insights that are shaping a more secure and interoperable U.S. semiconductor supply chain. Conducted under the CHIPS Metrology Program, this phase focused on developing a trusted data-sharing framework to meet the growing demands of
PCN
May 19, 20253 min read


Bits, Blocks and Big Data
The Provenance Chain™ Network Inc. (PCN) was honored to participate in a dynamic panel discussion exploring the technology stack powering the new space race during WTIA’s “Bits, Blocks, and Big Data” event, hosted at the stunning K&L Gates office in downtown Seattle. CEO Jeff Gaus represented PCN on the panel, joined by Clive George Cook of Precursor and Mike DeRosa of Gravitics Inc. , with the discussion co-moderated by Michael Doyle, President of Space Northwest and Arry
PCN
Apr 25, 20252 min read


Protecting Data Integrity: The Critical Role of Metrology in Semiconductor Manufacturing
Metrology is the backbone of semiconductor manufacturing, ensuring accurate measurements to monitor, predict, and control quality. Yet, metrology data must be protected as it contains sensitive information critical to the design, production, and performance of semiconductor devices. Ensuring its integrity and security is essential to safeguarding intellectual property (IP) and maintaining trust across the supply chain. Semiconductor companies that specialize in the developm
PCN
Jan 23, 20252 min read


Tariffs
This is second in a 4-part Series: Trade The last post discussed trade, but what it did not discuss is the terms under which trade takes place. The recent US elections have brought global trade imbalances, and tariffs, to the forefront of the US’s diplomatic conversations. This is because of the asymmetry of trade between the US and its trading partners – the US imports more than it exports, causing the structural trade deficit exceeding $1.0T annually. Arguably, some countri
Jeff Gaus
Jan 8, 20252 min read


T3I – Trade, Tariffs, Transparency, and Immigration
This is the first in a 4-part Series: Trade I make it my business to study stressors and accelerators of supply chain health across all industries—from rockets to rieslings. In this series, I’ll attempt to paint a possible future you will have to navigate and outline pathways that can make your journey smoother and more profitable. Global trade sits at the heart of geopolitics. America’s GDP of $29.4 Trillion dollars represents 25.9% of global GDP as of 2024 and represents th
Jeff Gaus
Jan 2, 20253 min read


Why Transparency Matters for Resiliency in Aerospace & Defense Supply Chains
By David Rampton On January 5, 2024, a Boeing's 737 MAX 9 aircraft door plug on an Alaska Airlines flight detached mid-air, leading to a large opening in the fuselage. FAA investigations identified systemic issues in Boeing's supply chain, highlighting gaps in quality control and supplier oversight. In complex, multi-tier Aerospace & Defense supply chains, the detection and mitigation of quality issues is extremely difficult to do. This incident is a clear example of why tran
David Rampton
Nov 1, 20243 min read


(Re)-Establishing Trust
I conduct informal polls when speaking publicly. I ask a series of simple questions: “How many of you trust your government? The media? The military? The police? Your friends?” I’m dismayed. In almost all cases, hands only raise for “friends?” What’s going on? Our institutions have lost people’s trust. This is not good. This threatens our society and our way of life. We could spend months debating what causes trust to erode. I choose instead to understand ways to establish an
Jeff Gaus
Jun 17, 20242 min read


The 4Ps of Commercial Trust
In the intricate web of global supply chains, the establishment and sustenance of commercial trust rests firmly upon four pivotal pillars: people , places , processes , and products . Let’s take a discerning look at how these elements intertwine to weave the fabric of confidence upon which businesses and consumers rely – in other words: what establishes trust. Firstly, the trustworthiness of individuals – People – involved in supply chains is paramount. The people behind the
Jeff Gaus
Oct 5, 20232 min read


What are we fighting for? You might be surprised by the answer.
By Jeff Gaus This post is inspired by Thomas Friedman’s most recent piece in the New York Times Opinion | America, China and a Crisis of...
Jeff Gaus
Apr 17, 20232 min read


Commercial Trust™ Architecture (CTA) - Universal Data Containers
As NFTs (non-fungible tokens) become more of a buzzword, we’d like to take an opportunity to explain more about these universal data containers, or as they are known in the industrial world: “digital twins”. A digital twin is a virtual representation that serves as the real-time digital counterpart of a physical object or process. Though the concept originated earlier, the first practical definition of digital twin originated from NASA in an attempt to improve physical model
Jeff Gaus
Dec 22, 20213 min read


Commercial Trust Architecture (CTA) - Standards
The reason we - collectively - are at peak productivity in the 21st century (pandemic aside) is because we have learned - through...
Jeff Gaus
Nov 19, 20212 min read


Commercial Trust Architecture (CTA) – Technology
Some of the most widely used innovations today started with a robust architecture or layering of elements that scale. Did you make a...
Jeff Gaus
Nov 3, 20213 min read


The 4th Software Wave is Not on Backorder
Some of you likely remember when you generated a purchase order with an actual piece of paper, a 3-part duplicate - file one in a 3 ring binder, mail or fax the other, and archive the third. This was well before enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems emerged. More of you remember, before eCommerce, when we had to be physically present to buy anything. Investor, author, and Stanford Professor Geoffrey Moore categorized and described these major enterprise software sys
Jeff Gaus
Oct 19, 20212 min read


The Verdict
The verdict: “I’m impressed as hell” Two weeks ago we launched our network and began processing transactions for our first customers. Last Thursday, we unveiled the functioning product to the founding members of the Oregon Transparency Initiative (OTI) . Unsolicited at the end of the presentation, a senior executive at a major super-regional brand had this to say: “ I am impressed as hell. ” Feedback doesn’t get much better than that. Thank you very much. Another attendee sai
Jeff Gaus
Jul 16, 20212 min read


WIIFM: Transparency and Positive Change Require Motivation
Warren Buffet’s right-hand man, Charlie Munger, famously once said, “Show me the incentive, and I’ll show you the outcome.” When it comes to business transformation, hope is not a strategy. Change always requires clear communication of vision and expectations coupled with the motivation needed to permanently alter behaviors. People rarely change the way they do things unless they have good reason to do so. When presented with anything new, people naturally ask the question,
Steve Brown
Apr 28, 20213 min read


Getting to Know the PCN Team: Jeff Gaus
Our CEO, Jeff Gaus is a husband, a father of two adult sons, and a Godfather to his nephew and cousin. His passions are: his family, youth education, and economic development. He believes capitalism is a force for good that can be channeled to solve many of the world's biggest problems. He believes in work-life integration; meaning technology allows us to weave our personal life into our work and our work into our personal lives, and we as humans need to accept the full pers
Theresa Jelderks
Apr 14, 20212 min read


Supply Chain Resiliency & the Red Planet
It has been six weeks since the Perseverance Rover completed its 34-million-mile journey and landed on Mars. In a few days, Perseverance will step aside to allow the first ever, Mars based helicopter, Ingenuity , to take flight. As Ingenuity prepares to explore the Martian skies, I cannot help but reflect on the monumental effort that started years before launch with the many hundreds of suppliers around the world who built components to support this mission. [Image courtesy
David Rampton
Apr 6, 20213 min read


Consumers are the Whole Problem; And it's Not Their Fault
What links climate change, pollution, child and forced labor, and deforestation? The answer is very simple: Us. The choices we make as consumers—what we buy, and how much we are willing to pay for things—have huge knock-on effects. Our collective buying behaviors impact the environment, fair trade, and human rights. And yet, in many ways, that’s not our fault, because it’s almost impossible for a consumer to know the real impact of the products she buys every day. A cheap
Steve Brown
Mar 9, 20213 min read


Trust, but Verify.
“Trust, but verify.” This Russian proverb was made famous during the 1980s when Ronald Reagan used it to describe the process of ensuring compliance with mutual nuclear disarmament by the USSR and the United States. The safety of the planet relied on transparency between two powerful and apprehensive nations; relying on both disclosure of information and verifiable evidence to develop trust. Today, the issues commanding America’s attention look different than nuclear war. Ec
Dylan Gaus
Feb 16, 20212 min read


Shopping in 2025: Personalized, Intelligent, and Supported
In 2020, COVID sent us to our rooms to think about what we’d done. Flights were grounded, factories went silent, and human activity slowed to a crawl. The skies cleared over Los Angeles and the Himalayan peaks were visible from India for the first time in decades. Home confinement has a way of focusing the mind and fueling self-reflection. We took stock of our lives, reassessed our priorities, and understood, perhaps for the first time, how fragile our modern way of life tru
Steve Brown
Feb 9, 20213 min read


With Technology Adoption - Timing is Everything
Exhibit A in “Timing is Everything” is: Telemedicine. I first gained experience with Telemedicine as a North American Healthcare sector lead in the mid-1990’s. We constructed telemedicine networks for some of the largest and most prestigious healthcare institutions in the US. They were trying to address the discrepancy of care quality and availability between urban and rural citizens. While there was efficacy and efficiency to be achieved using telemedicine, there were plenty
Jeff Gaus
Feb 2, 20212 min read


Are you Scared of Transparency? The Premise and the Promise.
In 2020 there were lots of scary things going on in the world, and perhaps more “transparency” is already on your radar screen as one of them. But should it be? As 2021 progresses let’s hope that most of last year’s truly scary issues subside. I have a feeling, however, that “transparency” as a concept, even a movement, will not be going away, it's going to become a bigger part of our lives. So, what exactly does that mean? And should we be concerned? The Premise: Simply pu
Milan Turk
Jan 21, 20213 min read


Optimism is Warranted
While I have in the past been accused of being a compulsive optimist, it is a pejorative I gladly embrace. In my role, one needs to be optimistic – yet, realistic – in order for projects, products, and companies to come to life. As the year begins, I commend our team for plowing through the pandemic and delivering, in spades. We know things will never be the same; we will not “return to normal.” There will be a NEW normal, and it will be very, very different from anything we
Jeff Gaus
Jan 5, 20212 min read
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