About Internet Computer (ICP)
Internet Computer (ICP) is a blockchain network targeting developers, businesses, and organizations. The DFINITY Foundation developed the platform to allow the internet to host backend software and harness its power as a computational tool. A network of computers globally can offer various cloud services using ICP, creating a decentralized alternative to legacy software providers. These services would operate transparently and also be interoperable through ICP.
Interactions and applications are created with canisters, the network's take on smart contracts commonly seen across most blockchains. The Internet Computer Protocol (ICP) governs these canisters that are both tamperproof and auditable. The key difference between a canister and a traditional smart contract is their usefulness in building scalable software services.
The blockchain's native token, ICP, is a utility token that interacts with the blockchain and its governance system. ICP rewards are distributed to users who participate in ICP's governance mechanisms or provide computing power as a node. An essential part of the network is the concept of cycles. You can convert ICP tokens to cycles, which are then used to run canister smart contracts stored on the blockchain. The network burns the ICP swapped for cycles, acting as a deflationary measure. This system works similarly to Ethereum's gas mechanism, putting a cost on computations.
By staking your ICP in neurons, you can also submit proposals and vote to affect the results. The ICP in a neuron is locked for at least six months and up to eight years. The longer you lock your ICP, the greater your voting power and rewards. ICP has no maximum supply but aims to reduce its annual inflation ratio to 5% as time goes on.