Andy Dale has started to blog about where all this XDI stuff is going at ooTao: DataTao. DataTao is (to my knowledge) the first pure data sharing service. In other words, any individual or organization with an i-name will be able to open a free account at DataTao and establish it as the “home base” for their personal or business data. DataTao will then enable the account owner to publish the data to any subscribing party (individual or organization) in any supported format (XDI, LID, SXIP, etc.)

The DataTao data brokering model does not require that DataTao be the authoritative source for the data, any more than a bank requires that it be the only place you can store your money. If you already have another authoritative source for some data — for example, if your Books We Like account is already authoritative for your book-buying preferences — then you just tell DataTao to subscribe to that data source. Now you’re empowered to share that data with anyone you like, under the terms you set as the data authority (which will be even easier the subscriber is a member of Identity Commons, because a key goal of IC is to help standardize common data sharing agreements.)

How excited am I about the DataTao model? After more than a decade of working on the underlying technologies that make it possible, I can’t wait to be the first one beating down their door to finally have one place to manage and control all my personal data sharing. I’m hoping that DataTao will become the model for data brokering that 2idi has been for i-brokering.

Go Andy! (And Steve, and Barry, and Justine, and all the other members of the DataTao team!)