Filecoin (⨎) is an open-source, public cryptocurrency and digital payment system intended to be a blockchain-based cooperative digital storage and data retrieval method.[1][2][3][4] It is made by Protocol Labs and builds on top of InterPlanetary File System,[1] allowing users to rent unused hard drive space.[5] A blockchain mechanism is used to register the deals.[6] According Filecoin's authors, it is a decentralized storage system that aims to “store humanity’s most important information.” Filecoin is an open protocol and backed by a blockchain that records commitments made by the network’s participants, with transactions made using FIL, the blockchain’s native currency. The blockchain is based on both proof-of-replication and proof-of-spacetime.
Contrary to centralized storage methodology, Filecoin aims to store data in a decentralized manner, which is resistant to problems that occur in centralized storage. Due to Filecoin's decentralized nature, it protects the integrity of data's location making it easily retrievable and hard to censor. It also allows people on their network to be their own custodians of the data that they store. Additionally, Filecoin also rewards the network nodes that mine and store data on their blockchain network.
History
The project was launched in August 2017 and raised over $200 million within 30 minutes.[6][7]
Philanthropy
In April 2021 the Filecoin Foundation donated 50,000 filecoins worth $10,000,000 to the Internet Archive. In addition, Internet archive's founder Brewster Kahle and director of partnerships Wendy Hanamura joined the boards of advisors of Filecoin and the Filecoin Foundation for the Decentralized Web.[8]
Network total storage power
As of July 2021 the total connected decentralized storage was 7.580 EiB.
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