What is an Internet Computer (ICP)?

Like many projects in the cryptocurrency space, the Internet Computer Protocol (or ICP) is more than just a form of digital currency. In fact, ICP tokens that can be purchased and traded through exchanges such as Coinbase are just part of a larger idea.

The basic idea of ICP is to create a new type of decentralized Internet and global computing system-where independent data centers around the world can join forces to create alternatives to cloud services (from companies such as Amazon Web Services and Google Cloud) that support most of the current Internet. ICP\'s plan is to have the protocol run on millions of computers around the world.

ICP developers say the resulting network has some key advantages compared to centralized alternatives. First, it operates through open standards, avoiding potential conflicts of interest when major cloud computing providers host products that compete with their own services.

ICP\'s global network of distributed data centers, originally known as DFINITY, can run all applications accessible through traditional Internet standards, such as DNS(the domain name system you use through a web browser and smartphone).

The ICP token has several main uses: It serves as a governance token (allowing holders to \"lock\" part of their ICP into the network in exchange for having a say in the future development of the ICP protocol), rewarded by the network to participating data centers in recognition of good behavior, and used to pay for transaction fees on the network.

How does ICP work?

Today\'s Internet is highly centralized. Popular applications on the web are often closed-source, proprietary, and hosted in a small number of data centers owned by large technology companies. If a critical data center fails, a large area of the network may shut down. Another major issue, especially for privacy advocates, is the ability of centralized enterprise network service providers to review or deplatform applications.

Internet computers attempt to provide a basic alternative so that developers can build, host and serve applications in a more decentralized way-allowing websites to be deployed directly on the public Internet. In addition, Internet computers will encourage open source and transparent software development.

As the MIT Technology Review\'s introduction of Internet computers explains: \"For example, the software will not run on dedicated servers in Google Cloud, but instead has no fixed physical address, but moves between servers owned by independent data centers around the world.

You can think of ICP as a way to convert cryptocurrency into processing power-the network will build fees based on the computing power required by a developer\'s project. As long as you pay for it, the website will run on the public Internet.

In theory, any type of application can be created and run on Internet computers-from Social networks like LinkedIn and TikTok to software similar to all familiar applications you know today, to new types of applications that have not yet been conceived. As a demonstration, ICP developers released CanCan\'s open source code, which they describe as a \"decentralized TikTok.\"

What risks may Internet computers face?

Participating in Internet computers may require more powerful hardware than traditional blockchain projects, which could threaten their decentralized spirit by limiting the number of potential participants. If the hardware requirements are too great, only large and well-capitalized participants can build a data center and participate in it.

In addition, in a truly decentralized network, who can be responsible for hosting abusive content? Companies that operate the Internet today employ a certain degree of restraint, although on the other hand, they can cancel anyone\'s platform at any time. Ideally, Internet computers (and other encryption protocols) can create solutions that allow decentralized governance to alleviate these challenges.

Internet computers are not the only protocol designed to reshape the Internet. Other potential competitors include IPFS/Filecoin and MIT\'s Solid(founded by web pioneer Tim Berners-Lee).

Who originally developed Internet computers?

The Internet Computer was built by the DFINITY Foundation and founded in 2016 by a developer named Dominic Williams. The DFINITY Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to the research and development of Internet computers-it was officially launched in May 2021 after years of research. Researchers from around the world have contributed to the foundation\'s work, including cryptographers with approximately 100,000 academic citations and 200 patents.