What is the Internet Computer (ICP)?
- Author
- CRYPTO PORT Editorial
- Published
- Updated
- Reading time
- 7 min
In short
The Internet Computer aims to run entire web applications on-chain. It launched in May 2021 and is developed under the non-profit DFINITY Foundation. Unusually, developers rather than users pay for computation, and web pages can be served directly from the network.
Key points
- Smart contracts, called canisters, can serve web pages directly
- A reverse gas model: developers prepay for computation instead of users
- An on-chain organisation, the NNS, decides upgrades and policy
- Chain-key cryptography lets it sign transactions on other blockchains
Definition
A network that runs applications as WebAssembly units called canisters, aiming to host and serve the web itself on-chain.
The Internet Computer's premise is that most so-called decentralised apps are really cloud servers plus a browser, with only asset records on-chain. If the interface and the logic live on a central server, the operator can switch the app off. Its answer is to run the whole application on-chain.
The unit of deployment is a canister — a WebAssembly module holding both code and state. Canisters can answer HTTP requests, so a browser can load a page straight from the network. The network is organised as a set of subnet blockchains and grows by adding subnets.
The fee model is inverted. Instead of users paying gas per transaction, developers buy computational resources called cycles in advance and top up their canisters. Users can therefore use an app without a wallet, while developers carry an ongoing cost.
Governance runs through the Network Nervous System, an on-chain body where participants lock ICP for voting power and decide protocol upgrades and node additions. Chain-key cryptography further lets the network use keys held collectively across nodes to sign Bitcoin and Ethereum transactions, providing a path to other chains' assets without a bridge.
Watch out for
- · NNS votes can upgrade or halt canisters, so application immutability cannot be assumed
- · Only vetted providers may operate nodes; participation is not open
- · Locking ICP for voting power commits it for a fixed period during which it cannot be withdrawn
Frequently asked questions
Do users really not pay gas?
In most apps, no — developers prepay for computation. If a canister runs out of cycles, however, it stops.