The desire to do something to help the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic is universal. The ability to do so, however, with a quarter of the world’s population in lockdown, is limited. One app company believes it has found a way to balance the goals of entertaining the quarantined while supporting the fightback against coronavirus.
Triffic, a crypto-powered augmented reality app built on the Ardor blockchain and powered by Jelurida, normally tasks users with collecting virtual rewards in physical locations. With global travel restrictions now in place, it’s repurposed its AR app, adding a feature that enables users to raise funds for the World Health Organisation’s COVID-19 Response. Triffic is not the only crypto project seeking to help the COVID-19 fight, either.
Crypto companies join the COVID-19 cause
Dozens of companies throughout the crypto industry have thrown their support behind measures designed to combat the coronavirus pandemic. Binance’s ‘Crypto Against COVID’ fund will see $5M donated to the cause. Led by the nonprofit Binance Charity Foundation, the program will help purchase medical supplies in countries badly affected by the outbreak.
Other crypto projects have done what they can to provide financial, technical and humanitarian solutions to the crisis. Algorand has launched a COVID-19 reporting application, and an alliance of crypto companies is preparing a hackathon to brainstorm ways to engineer a response. Interest in the use of blockchain to enable supply chain tracking and tracing has also peaked, as the world recognizes the need for accountability in the global movement of goods.
Gamifying a Serious Endeavor
Users of Triffic’s augmented app wishing to join the fight against COVID-19 can move about to collect reward beacons within their own quarantine location. To match the spirit of the times, and inject a little fun into a worthy cause, Triffic has created augmented reality toilet rolls, sanitizer and facemasks that will spawn in the user’s location. Collecting as many as possible will maximize the amount that is contributed towards the COVID-19 program. So far, more than 26,000 GPS tokens worth hundreds of dollars have been donated to the cause.
Helping the Helpless
Feeling helpless in the face of an invisible foe is one of the most common sensations experienced by the billions now watching the pandemic unfold from their homes. The sight of frontline workers continuing to supply vital services, despite the health risks, has further compounded the sense of frustration by those who are able-bodied but locked at home. For now, apps like Triffic, together with distributed computing solutions directly aiding virus researchers, are about as good as it gets. While the search for a coronavirus vaccine goes on, the world waits and hopes.