There are generally two types of data. There’s structured data, and unstructured data. When it comes to cookies we can see perfect examples of each.
The ingredients that go into cookies are precise. They’re measured, individual units that can be charted on a graph. Two cups of flour, one cup of sugar, one cup of butter, and two eggs. All distinct and measurable. This is Structured data. Data with units and measures.
Now, combine the ingredients and bake them together, and you get a scrumptious plate of cookies. But if you were to try to chart the individual components that went in to each cookie without already knowing the recipe that was used, it’s much more difficult. If I were to hand you a plate of cookies, could you tell me the exact measurements of the ingredients? Probably not. Our structured data - the recipe - has become unstructured data - the finished product - the plate of cookies.
Documents and contracts are similar. You start with structured data. Names, dates, addresses, financial terms. But then everything gets merged together into the prose of a document or contract. Sentences and paragraphs mix all the data together so that it’s easy to read and understand with the human brain, but a consequence is that it isn’t easy for computers and software to understand. Much like the ingredients in the cookie, the structured document and contract data that we had at the beginning has become unstructured.
A big part of Integra’s innovation is to preserve the structured data within the metadata of documents and contracts, even when the visible part of the document is unstructured.
Then, you have the benefits of both worlds - the visible documents and contracts are written to be read by humans, as always, but the structured data can be ready by computer software.
Integra’s blockchain authentication confirms the data’s trust and integrity, even when the document moves between different organizations, which then allows the structured data to be automated with software applications that have been Integra-enabled.