Dialogue Sukhavati: Decentralized storage is the prerequisite for the implementation of Web 3.0 applications

With the rapid development of the internet industry, the explosive growth of information has generated massive amounts of data, while increasing storage costs for individuals and businesses. The emergence of decentralized storage technology can, to some extent, address the demand for massive data storage and computation, while also promoting the realization of the Web3.0 vision, which allows internet users to control their own digital identities, assets, and data.

Sukhavati, as a decentralized cloud service network focused on storage, is gaining increasing attention in the market. Recently, Sukhavati community ambassador Richsrd visited the Catcher Academy to share insights on Sukhavati's advantages and innovations, the role of distributed storage in Web3, and other topics, hoping to help you gain a deeper understanding of decentralized storage and Web3.

Catcher: Please introduce the specific practical explorations of Sukhavati Network in the industry. What is the current development progress?

Richsrd: Sukhavati is a decentralized cloud service network centered on storage. It consists of a consensus layer, storage layer, and application layer. The consensus layer is based on the PoS space proof/PoC capacity proof mechanism, which can directly reuse the computing power of existing PoS/PoC protocols. The storage layer proposes the EPoSt (Efficient-Proof-of-Spacetime) mechanism based on TEE (Trusted Execution Environment) to solve the verification challenges of decentralized storage, allowing massive low-power storage devices to be integrated into the network.

Based on this, Sukhavati will build a decentralized data access gateway at the application layer that covers both Web3.0 and Web2.0 storage services, providing unified data storage, retrieval, and management services for Web3.0 applications. Sukhavati's mission is to incentivize and improve the blockchain distributed storage ecosystem, promoting it to become the true infrastructure of the next generation of the internet, expanding the application scenarios for the realization of the Web3.0 vision.

Since the birth of the internet and the web, we have experienced the read-only era of Web1.0 and the user-generated content era of Web2.0. With the emergence of Bitcoin and smart contract public chains like Ethereum, the vision of Web3.0 has once again taken root in people's minds.

The goal of Web3.0 is to make the internet more decentralized, secure, and verifiable. The value of blockchain, including rights confirmation, consensus mechanisms, and incentive-compatible mechanisms, greatly facilitates the realization of the Web3.0 vision. However, there is still a critical component missing for large-scale application: the capability for massive data storage and retrieval.

To address the decentralized verification challenges of large-scale storage, Filecoin proposed using zero-knowledge proofs for verification. However, this method requires a significant amount of computing power, making the cost of storing application data very high and excluding many small storage devices. This has also led to a highly centralized distribution of storage.

As decentralized storage moves toward practical usability, many issues remain to be resolved. In the future scenarios of Web3.0 and the Internet of Things, a vast amount of data will be generated, and Web3.0 applications will require a secure, highly available, low-cost, and low-power decentralized data access service. This is the background for the birth of Sukhavati.

Currently, Sukhavati has completed the development and deployment of the ERC2.0 token contract and has achieved Chia computing power compatibility design in the consensus layer. If this process goes smoothly, the expected mining for the testnet can be launched successfully before September. In addition, the current liquidity incentive program for ERC20 tokens will soon be rolled out to the market.

Catcher: The discussion about Web3 in the industry is ongoing. What do you think the ultimate vision of Web3.0 will be? What infrastructure is still needed to build Web3.0?

Richsrd: A vivid summary would be that based on the development of blockchain, Web3.0 can establish a decentralized trust network. With the help of blockchain technology, Web3.0 can achieve the following vision:

1) Implement a "honeycomb" structure to create a P2P economy. 2) More democratic internet governance. 3) A decentralized identity system that allows individuals to self-manage their identity information. 4) Smart contracts and digital assets provide a fast and seamless transaction experience.

Looking ahead, the foundational infrastructure for the development of Web3.0 will occupy a more important position in the following areas:

The first is money: BTC, USDX, algorithmic stablecoins, ETH. These are the hard currencies of the Web3.0 world and are indispensable infrastructure.

The second is underlying public chains: ETH, Solana, DOT, Cosmos, Dfinity. The concept of cross-chain and the world computer is remarkable.

The third is the storage projects we are familiar with: Filecoin, Arweave, Sukhavati, and other underlying storage infrastructures.

The fourth is middleware: Link, The Graph, Mask, Sukhavati. Sukhavati supports the different needs of dApps by sending storage content to different storage networks, functioning similarly to a middleware storage network.

Catcher: Compared to other Web3.0 infrastructures, what are Sukhavati's advantages and innovations?

Richsrd:

1) Sukhavati starts from the largest PoS/PoC in hard disk mining, quickly establishing a solid consensus layer by reusing existing PoS/PoC computing power, while covering the largest group of hard disk storage space in the world.

Sukhavati can directly reuse the computing power of existing PoS/PoC networks, making its public chain consensus layer very efficient and environmentally friendly, requiring only a minimal amount of energy to provide a very secure consensus layer. Additionally, it can scale computing power massively at the initial launch, coexisting with existing PoS/PoC protocols while bringing new value and imaginative space to these underlying mining devices.

2) Sukhavati has implemented the EPoSt (Efficient Proof-of-Spacetime) mechanism based on TEE design. Massive long-tail low-power idle storage devices at the edge of the network, such as home NAS servers, can participate in Sukhavati's storage mining as long as their CPU supports TEE technology, leveraging their low cost and P2P network transmission advantages.

Chia miners can easily deploy Sukhavati mining. If you already have completed plot files, you can directly use them for SKT mining without needing to replot, and plot files corresponding to K32, K33, or higher K values can also be used. Sukhavati's consensus layer mining does not set any thresholds, welcoming any miners to participate.

We have made many miner-friendly designs in terms of security and usability, allowing miners to conveniently participate in SKT mining while ensuring the safety of their Chia private keys. Currently, Sukhavati's consensus layer is still under development and optimization, and we hope to provide miners with the best security and mining experience.

Catcher: I understand that Sukhavati mainly consists of three foundational layers: consensus layer, storage layer, and application layer. Could you briefly introduce these three foundational layers and their respective roles?

Richsrd: In the consensus layer, Sukhavati uses PoS space proof/PoC capacity proof as the consensus protocol. Its characteristic is that after completing the initial initialization operations, it only requires a small amount of computing and IO resources to maintain high security consensus, allowing more resources to be used for other meaningful work, preparing for the storage layer and application layer. At the same time, Sukhavati can also be compatible with the computing power of existing PoS/PoC consensus protocols, quickly starting as a foundation.

In the storage layer, Sukhavati implements the EPoSt (Efficient Proof-of-Spacetime) mechanism based on TEE design. Storage nodes complete the proof of storage commitments during the LivingPoSt and WinningPoSt verification processes, and the proof results are recorded on-chain to obtain incentives for the storage part. EPoSt fully utilizes the advantages of TEE hardware architecture, rebalancing performance and security, achieving over 100 times faster verification speed compared to zero-knowledge proofs based purely on cryptography.

Thanks to this, massive long-tail low-power idle storage devices at the edge of the network, such as home NAS servers, can participate in Sukhavati's storage mining as long as their CPU supports TEE technology, leveraging their low cost and P2P network transmission advantages.

Why does TEE support such high verification speeds? Let me illustrate with a diagram already included in the white paper:

In the application layer, Sukhavati will establish a decentralized data access gateway covering the Web3.0 storage ecosystem and Web2.0 storage services, connecting various protocol islands, based on the local trusted computing capabilities of nodes and the flexible scalability of the Substrate framework, providing unified, compliant data storage, retrieval, and management services for Web3.0 applications.

These three foundational layers correspond to different functions, with each layer built upon the previous one. The development of the Sukhavati network is divided into three stages, gradually realizing the vision of a fully decentralized cloud service network starting from the basic consensus layer.

Catcher: One of the core foundations of Sukhavati is storage. What are the differentiated positioning and advantages of Sukhavati in the storage sector?

Richsrd: Sukhavati's positioning is to build a decentralized data access gateway covering the Web3.0 storage ecosystem and Web2.0 storage services, connecting existing storage protocol islands, and providing unified data storage, retrieval, and management services for Web3.0 dApps.

To achieve this goal, Sukhavati needs a broad and solid consensus layer. After research, we decided to start from the largest PoS/PoC in hard disk mining, quickly establishing a solid consensus layer by reusing existing PoS/PoC computing power while covering the largest group of hard disk storage space in the world.

Based on this, Sukhavati will fully leverage the high efficiency of PoS/PoC consensus and hardware-based TEE technology to establish a storage layer capable of providing hot storage capabilities. Thanks to Sukhavati's overall design, any device supporting TEE technology can join the storage network, forming a truly decentralized storage network. Since Filecoin is more suitable for cold storage scenarios and Arweave is used for storing high-value density permanent data, Sukhavati's hot storage layer can serve as a storage middleware in the Web3 ecosystem, sending storage content to different storage networks based on the different needs of dApps.

Catcher: How do you view the current development of the storage sector? How do you understand the role of storage mining in Web3? What challenges are currently faced?

Richsrd: Decentralized storage is a prerequisite for the landing of Web3.0 applications and is the core infrastructure for the "explosive" applications of Web3. Currently, there are some representative projects emerging in various subfields. For example, in the contract-based storage sector, there are zero-knowledge proof-based Filecoin and TEE-based Crust; in the permanent storage sector, there is Arweave; and in the distributed object storage sector, there is Storj, among others. Most of these storage sector projects are still in the early stages of launch and have many areas that need improvement, whether in ecological completeness, real application costs, or the true realization of Web3.0 concepts, there is still a considerable distance from actual applications and business.

It is precisely because we see the current development status of the storage sector, along with its problems and role deficiencies, that we decided to establish Sukhavati Network with the goal of improving the Web3.0 storage infrastructure and joining the construction of this ecosystem.

Catcher: What are the differences between Sukhavati's mining model and those of Filecoin and Chia? How can ordinary users participate in Sukhavati's mining? What are the requirements for hardware, mining machines, and devices?

Richsrd: The Sukhavati network has its own independent consensus layer, and its mining can be compatible with most Chia mining machines and reuse existing Chia computing power. After the mainnet goes live, we will release a computing power import tool to help miners safely and reliably import Chia computing power into the Sukhavati network for mining operations. Of course, you can also re-plot and then mine. The plotting process of Sukhavati is much faster than the sealing process of Filecoin.

Sukhavati supports mining using personal computers and professional servers.

The mining process consists of two stages:

1. Plotting (P-plotting)
2. Mining

The plotting process is a one-time operation that can be done using a regular computer's CPU. Machines with high memory and SSDs can complete plotting faster, but at a higher cost.

After completing the plotting, you can enter the actual mining phase. The energy consumption of Sukhavati's mining process is very low, requiring only a small amount of local disk IO and CPU, so personal computers, home NAS servers, and devices like Raspberry Pi can all participate in mining, with very low energy consumption.

In addition to considering the physical devices for mining, we also need to understand Sukhavati's economic model. In Sukhavati's token economy, staking mining yields much higher returns than non-staking mining; before the staking feature is opened, all miners can only mine directly with their machines. After the staking feature goes live, once a certain amount of staking is met, mining rewards can increase by up to 100 times. Therefore, how to choose one's mining strategy is a continuous consideration for miners.

Before the test network is released, ERC20 tokens can participate in liquidity incentive mining, and detailed rules and rewards will be announced soon. After the testnet is launched, storage mining will be initiated immediately, and detailed rules will also be announced shortly. In terms of mining hardware, the requirements will be much lower compared to Filecoin, especially in terms of cluster thresholds. Sukhavati's original intention is to allow more hardware devices, such as PoS/PoC and storage mining devices, to participate in the construction of the network.

Catcher: How is Sukhavati's token economic model designed? What is its core value?

Richsrd: The total supply of Sukhavati (SKT) tokens is 618 million.

Among them, the proportion of mining incentives is 61.8% (381 million). It will be released through block rewards and used to maintain the operation of the Sukhavati network. Mining rewards will continue for 40 years. The founding team's SKT proportion is 10% (61 million). You can view all token distribution details in our white paper link: https://sukhavati.io/Sukhavati_Network_Whitepaper.pdf

User-friendly token economics are crucial for the long-term development of a storage project. First, a reasonable economic model ensures the security and stability of the storage network, providing richer rewards to active contributors in the network while lowering the participation costs for new users, allowing fresh blood to join at various stages of the entire storage network.

I believe that as Sukhavati Network progresses, there will be continuous good news. In the short term, the economic white paper for Sukhavati will be announced, and with the launch of Sukhavati Network and the official start of mining, more people will participate in the network. As the project progresses, we are also preparing for cooperation with more other projects.

The core of Sukhavati's token economic model is designed around the evolutionary development and long-term stability of the entire storage network, with block rewards providing different incentives for various participants at different stages of the network.

In the first stage, the network consensus establishment phase, the main token rewards will be given to miners who contribute to the network consensus. At the same time, for long-term security and stability, a considerable portion of the rewards will be allocated to network miners who provide long-term staking for their computing power.

In the second stage, during the establishment of the storage layer, some rewards will be converted into storage mining rewards to promote the evolution and development of the network. Additionally, there will be an early reward pool reserved for developers who contribute to ecological development, and ordinary users can also participate in the funding of this reward pool to obtain a more long-term coin-based return.

The third stage will be the launch of the application layer. To achieve widespread application of the Sukhavati network, some strategically important advisory nodes will be established, and after making significant investments in the ecosystem in the early stages, the corresponding entities can become governance nodes with special functions.

Catcher: We know that there are many storage projects in the current Web3.0 ecosystem, but most of them are incompatible with each other and are suitable for different demand scenarios. How does Sukhavati respond to this series of issues? What are the practical scenarios?

Richsrd: For example, to solve the decentralized verification challenges of large-scale storage, Filecoin proposed using zero-knowledge proofs for verification. However, this method requires a significant amount of computing power, making the cost of storing application data very high and excluding many small storage devices. This has also led to a highly centralized distribution of storage.

Therefore, since Filecoin is more suitable for cold storage scenarios and Arweave is used for storing high-value density permanent data, Sukhavati's hot storage layer can serve as a storage middleware in the Web3 ecosystem, sending storage content to different storage networks based on the different needs of dApps.

In the early stages of Sukhavati, the PoS/PoC mining of the consensus layer and the storage mining of the storage layer will be key to establishing a solid foundation. However, in addition to these two, the early hot storage layer will provide traffic distribution for the existing massive internet CDN business, and in the mid-to-late stages, based on the local trusted computing capabilities of nodes, it will provide a bridge for Web2.0 applications to migrate to Web3.0, as well as serverless cloud computing services similar to AWS Lambda. These are all application scenarios that Sukhavati can serve. In the more distant future, we hope that nodes in the Sukhavati network can participate in 5G networks and edge computing, becoming reliable support nodes with efficient consensus and storage mechanisms.

Catcher: As more public chains emerge, how do you think the future public chain market will develop? How will Sukhavati adapt to these development trends?

Richsrd: Public chains are an indispensable part of the blockchain industry's development, and their development content tends to be specialized and conceptual. Each subfield has its leading projects; for example, when it comes to DeFi, everyone still looks to ETH as the leader. Similarly, Flow focuses solely on incubating and supporting NFT projects, while Rose focuses on an ecosystem layout centered on data privacy. In the future, storage will also gradually move toward specialized development.

In the future public chain market, unicorns will emerge in each subfield as leading entities in the entire market. As a public chain focused on the storage field, Sukhavati will continue to cultivate this niche area and strive to realize the grand vision of Web3.0.

Users can follow Sukhavati's update plans through the following official channels:

Official website: https://sukhavati.io

WeChat Official Account: Sukhavati Chinese Community

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Sukhavati_N