Unravelling ICP Blockchain White Paper: Unlocking the Future of Decentralized Computation Power!
Problem Defined in the White Paper:
The Internet Computer (IC) is a blockchain platform designed to overcome the limitations of traditional blockchain platforms, such as high transaction and storage costs, slow computational speed, and the inability to serve frontends to users.
The IC aims to provide a decentralized platform for executing smart contracts, enabling the creation of fully decentralized applications that are hosted end-to-end on blockchain.
Solution
The IC is a radical new design of blockchain that unleashes the full potential of smart contracts. It consists of a set of cryptographic protocols that connect independently operated nodes into a collection of blockchains, which host and execute "canisters," the IC's form of smart contracts. Canisters can store data, perform general computations on that data, and provide a complete technology stack, serving web pages directly to end users.
Market Size & Opportunity
The IC has the potential to revolutionize the way we build and interact with decentralized applications. With its ability to host and execute smart contracts, the IC can enable a wide range of use cases, from decentralized finance (DeFi) and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) to decentralized social media and gaming platforms.
The IC's market size and opportunity are vast, with the potential to disrupt traditional industries and create new ones.
Consensus Mechanism The IC uses a new consensus protocol that is designed to be extremely simple and robust. The protocol is based on a blockchain, with each non-genesis block containing a payload of inputs and a hash of the block's parent in the tree. The protocol proceeds in rounds, with one or more blocks of height h being added to the tree in each round.
The IC consensus protocol guarantees safety under a weak communication assumption and guarantees liveness under a partial synchrony assumption.
Tokenomics
The IC has a native token called ICP, which is used for staking in the Network Nervous System (NNS), conversion to cycles, payment to node providers, and other functions. ICP tokens are also used for governance, with users who have ICP tokens staked in the NNS receiving newly minted ICP tokens as a voting reward.
Smart Contracts
The IC provides a run-time environment for executing WebAssembly (Wasm) programs in canisters, which are roughly the same as processes. Canister programs are encoded in Wasm, and the IC provides a messaging interface definition language and wire format called Candid for typed, high-level, and cross-language interoperability.
Scalability
The IC is designed to be highly scalable, with the ability to process unbounded volumes of smart contract data and computation natively. The IC can grow in capacity by adding more nodes to the network, making it an ideal platform for large-scale decentralized applications.
Real World Value
The IC has real-world value as a decentralized platform for executing smart contracts. Its ability to host and execute canisters enables a wide range of use cases, from DeFi and NFTs to decentralized social media and gaming platforms. The IC's market size and opportunity are vast, with the potential to disrupt traditional industries and create new ones.
Security Measures The IC has several security measures in place,
including:
Chain-key cryptography: The IC uses a unique and powerful collection of technologies called chain-key cryptography, which includes threshold signatures, digital signatures, and a distributed key generation (DKG) protocol.Threshold signatures: The IC uses threshold signatures to ensure that a subset of replicas can generate a signature on a message, even if some replicas are faulty.Distributed key generation (DKG) protocol: The IC uses a DKG protocol to securely distribute shares of the secret signing key to replicas.Consensus protocol: The IC consensus protocol is designed to be extremely simple and robust, with a weak communication assumption and a partial synchrony assumption.
Code Audits The IC has undergone several code audits, including a security audit by a third-party firm. The audit found several vulnerabilities in the IC's code, which were subsequently fixed.
Development Roadmap The IC is still in development, with several features and upgrades planned for the near future. Some of the upcoming features include:
Compute Platform: The IC will become a decentralized compute platform, allowing anyone to deploy canister smart contracts on the Internet and run them in a decentralized manner.Blockchain Singularity: The IC will achieve a state of "Blockchain Singularity," where all computations of the world can run on the IC.Reduced End-to-end Latency: The IC will reduce end-to-end latency, making it faster and more responsive.Increased Storage Capacity and Throughput: The IC will increase storage capacity and throughput, making it more scalable and efficient.Decentralized AI: The IC will enable decentralized AI, allowing users to trust AI models running on the IC with no visibility into how data is used and how AI models produce responses.Chain Fusion: The IC will enable Chain Fusion, allowing blockchains like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana to be "fused" together with the IC to create a seamless single-chain end-user experience for multi-chain dapps.Chain Fusion Supports Bitcoin Ordinals and Runes: The IC will support Bitcoin ordinals and runes, enabling users to interact with Bitcoin smart contracts on the IC.Chain Fusion Supports Solana: The IC will support Solana, enabling users to interact with Solana smart contracts on the IC.Chain Fusion Supports EVM Chains: The IC will support EVM chains, enabling users to interact with EVM-based smart contracts on the IC.Privacy: The IC will enable privacy-preserving dapps, allowing users to store and share encrypted data on-chain.Platform Decentralization: The IC will become fully decentralized, eliminating central points of control and ensuring that users interact with the IC without relying on a single party.Identity: The IC will enable a robust authentication solution based on passkeys, with easy onboarding and support for identity attributes while protecting users' privacy.Digital Assets: The IC will enable DeFi protocols, real-world asset tokenization, and other digital asset solutions, making it an attractive platform to build multi-chain custody solutions and wallets.Governance & Tokenomics: The IC will have two kinds of built-in governance systems, the NNS and the SNS framework, which will facilitate decentralized decision making and incentivize voting participation.Developer Experience: The IC will have a rich set of libraries, testing frameworks, and developer tools, making it easier for developers to build and deploy canisters on the IC.
Some of the projects on ICP ecosystem:
DeFi
ICPSwap: An AMM DEX built completely on-chain that is the premier hub for full-stack financial and DAO services on ICP.Funded: A web3 crowdfunding platform that allows users to participate in crowdfunding with ICP, BTC, and ETH without worrying about losing money on gas fees.Sonic DEX: A multichain decentralized exchange built on the Internet Computer Protocol (ICP) that offers a wide range of DeFi services.Helix Markets: A decentralized exchange that aims to bring true ownership and full transparency to crypto trading.ICDex: An orderbook-based DEX that runs 100% on-chain, made possible by advanced ICP smart contracts.Finny: A lending and borrowing platform that allows users to lend and borrow against their crypto without bridging it across chains.Catalyze: A social dapp that serves as a community organizing tool where users can build groups, interact with other members, create/run events, and transact using their Web3 identity and wallet.DecideAI: An ecosystem that consists of three products, designed to meet the needs of the high-end, specialized LLM market.Plural Finance: A platform that enables coffee farmers to submit data reports on their yields and processes for crop insurance purposes.ICPEx: A decentralized exchange built entirely on the chain based on the ICP.
NFT
NFID: A digital identity that keeps personal information private and digital assets secure.Bioniq: The fastest Ordinals marketplace where users can buy, sell, and trade with no gas fees, near-instant finality, and decentralized secure token bridging.Yuku: A platform that allows users to unlock limitless potential by creating, sharing, and monetizing NFTs, metaverse experiences, and gamefi content.Entrepot: A decentralized NFT marketplace developed by ToniqLabs, providing users with tools and on-chain services to design, deploy, and manage NFTs and traditional tokens.Plethora: A Web3 platformer that rewards users with fun gameplay and NFTs, empowering NFT projects to launch their collections with immersive experiences customized for users.Cosmicrafts: A virtual world where users can engage in thrilling interstellar battles, strategize with allies, and conquer the cosmos.NFT Studio: A platform that allows users to create 3D NFTs, which are living 3D code that can run on the ICP blockchain.Hobbi: A platform that allows users to create a profile and record all the multimedia content they consume, whether it's a movie, a book, or even a video game.ICP NFT Creater: A Shopify app designed to streamline the process of creating and launching NFT collections, product certificates, and more on ICP.Bitomni: A BTCFi-driven omnichain asset management protocol with built-in BTCFi DApps across multiple blockchains.
SocialFi
Hot or Not: A decentralized short-form video-based social media platform that integrates prediction markets for content.TAGGR: A fully on-chain and fully autonomous SocialFi network that allows users to publish content on a public compute infrastructure.OpenChat: A fully decentralized real-time messaging service that is indistinguishable from Web2 chat apps while living 100% on the blockchain.DSCVR: An end-to-end decentralized Web3 social media platform that allows communities to form into groups called Portals.Seers: A decentralized Twitter that includes prediction markets, allowing users to engage in social media features and prediction markets.Nuance: A Web3.0 blogging platform that is hosted on-chain end-to-end on the Internet Computer.Cosmicrafts: A virtual world where users can engage in thrilling interstellar battles, strategize with allies, and conquer the cosmos.Kontribute: A web3 creators platform that brings story writing and digital art collectibles together.Dstar: A marketplace for buying and selling Internet Identity (II) trading accounts.Metaforo ICP deployment: A Web3 forum that prioritizes decentralization, community ownership, and token-gated governance.
Games
Dragginz: A virtual pets game from the creators of Neopets, where users can hatch and raise Dragginz to accompany them on their adventures.AutoRoyale: A battle royale 2D shooter on ICP, where users can grab gear, outplay the competition, and stay alive as the battleground shrinks.Cubetopia: A Web3 building game where players can create anything on unique blocky islands, each island being a mutable NFT stored on the Internet Computer blockchain.Plethora: A Web3 platformer that rewards users with fun gameplay and NFTs, empowering NFT projects to launch their collections with immersive experiences customized for users.Cosmicrafts: A virtual world where users can engage in thrilling interstellar battles, strategize with allies, and conquer the cosmos.Jumpy Motoko: A Unity play-to-earn game on Internet Computer, where users can deploy their own Unity play-to-earn game too.Windows IC: A React Dapp built on the Internet Computer, mimicking what a Chromebook can do, but for a mimic of the Windows Operating System.Reversi: A completely decentralized multiplayer game that allows users to play against a friend or foe in real-time, from any browser, anywhere in the world.Goblin Studio: A platform that allows users to create, translate, and interact with goblins in a virtual world.CARMANIA: A game that brings digital community into a unified virtual space, where users can build, customize, and compete with their dream cars.
Tools/Infrastructure
ICPSwap: An AMM DEX built completely on-chain that is the premier hub for full-stack financial and DAO services on ICP.ICDex: An orderbook-based DEX that runs 100% on-chain, made possible by advanced ICP smart contracts.ICLightHouse: A framework for developing true web3 DeFi infrastructure on the Internet Computer.Bitfinity EVM: An EVM compatibility layer for the IC, allowing users to deploy their Solidity smart contracts to the Internet Computer.NNS Dapp: A front-end dapp that allows users to interact with the Internet Computer's Network Nervous System with a user-friendly UI.Plug Wallet: A wallet that allows users to store, send, swap, deposit, and log into IC apps in a click.Stoic Wallet: A digital wallet that authenticates users through a variety of methods, including Internet Identity.
Overall, the Internet Computer is a revolutionary blockchain platform that has the potential to disrupt traditional industries and create new ones. Its ability to host and execute smart contracts, combined with its scalability and security measures, make it an ideal platform for large-scale decentralized applications.