IOTA Rebrands as Sovereign Digital Infrastructure in Landmark Schiener Interview

• IOTA’s co-founder recently referred to IOTA as a foundational Layer 1 (L1) platform for global digital trade, with no direct competition.
• Schiener explains that IOTA’s uniqueness is rooted in the practical adoption of IOTA technology in real-world contexts.

Dominik Schiener recently sat down for an interview with Miss Crypto, where they began by reflecting on the journey of the IOTA network. In celebration of its 10th anniversary, IOTA is distributing 10 million tokens to the community through airdrops, staking rewards, raffles, and engagement initiatives.

To commemorate this milestone, an anniversary celebration took place in Singapore. IOTA’s reach has steadily grown worldwide, spanning Africa, Europe, Asia, and beyond, establishing it as a leading Layer 1 network with tangible real-world applications.

Dominik highlighted IOTA’s unique advantage in supply chain innovation, emphasizing how the network is helping bring physical assets online securely and efficiently. He noted that the project is ahead of most competitors in this area and added that “we’re further ahead than other projects,” a position he intends to leverage to increase the value and utility of the IOTA token.

IOTA is currently ranked as the 94th largest token, with a market capitalization of approximately $606 million and a price of $0.1417, reflecting a 5% increase over the past 24 hours.

The conversation also touched on a post Dominik shared on X in September, where he said, “I am all for repeating 2017. This time, with countries adopting our tech and institutional investors buying the coins. IOTA.” He described 2017 as a defining moment for the industry, a time when blockchain’s potential began to break into the mainstream.

But this time, Dominik believes the momentum will be grounded in real utility, not speculation.

When asked how IOTA Foundation differs from other blockchain networks, Dominik Schiener was quick to point out how much the industry has advanced. He explained that the market is no longer fixated on technical novelty alone and cryptography. Instead, the focus has shifted to practical adoption and real-world application.

Moon, an IOTA ambassador, shared highlights from the interview, emphasizing his confidence in the project by stating that they are “literally sitting on a gold mine with IOTA.”

TWIN and Trade Infrastructure

He pointed to international trade as a prime example of where IOTA fits in. Global trade still relies heavily on outdated, paper-based processes, making trust a major barrier.

Dominik illustrated the challenge of trust in global trade, noting that more than four billion transactions remain paper-based, which raises concerns about data reliability and verification across borders.

The co-founder stressed that international trade represents “one-third of global GDP and around $30 trillion in goods moving worldwide,” and that IOTA’s infrastructure is designed to bring transparency, security, and trust to this massive sector.

Take TWIN, short for Trade & Logistics Web Infrastructure Network, as an example. Built on top of the IOTA network, it’s designed to power real-world trade infrastructure.

The initiative was developed in collaboration with the IOTA Foundation, TradeMark Africa, the World Economic Forum, the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, the Global Alliance for Trade Facilitation, and the Chartered Institute of Export & International Trade.

Dominik Schiener stated that with TWIN, IOTA has grown beyond a startup tech company, but it’s now a partner to international organizations that all have one aim: driving the future of digital trade.

Salima, an IOTA enthusiast, added that this shift “reframes IOTA as global public infrastructure, backed by institutions that represent trust, policy access, and geopolitical soft power that other blockchains do that level of institutional legitimacy.”

She then confirmed that a new Chief Marketing Officer based in the U.S. has joined the team, and a Chief Communications Officer focused on global trade will soon be announced, both appointed to help take IOTA mainstream, attract institutional investors, and strengthen its identity as a sovereign public network.