🔗From a Global Perspective

ThreeFold envisions a new internet, an alternative to the internet of today. To make this a reality, the ThreeFold Grid needs to reach a million (or millions of) nodes. A world with a million nodes …

• Ensures that connectivity is no longer monopolized by a few large corporations. The Internet is more resilient to large-scale outages, cyber-attacks, and natural disasters.
• Empowers people and organizations with control over their data. We are less vulnerable to data breaches and misuse of our data.
• Lays the groundwork for decentralized AI, where algorithms are built on ethical, diverse data sets and innovation is open
• Democratizes access to computational resources. Lower costs and scalable infrastructure fosters a global environment of innovation and drives economic growth and opportunity.
• Means efficient and optimized energy usage, reducing the need for power-hungry data centers, and supporting global efforts to minimize negative impact on our planet.
• Bridges the digital divide by introducing reliable Internet access to developing and remote regions, empowering them with access to crucial knowledge and information.
• Promotes global collaboration, creating a rich environment for cultural exchange and collective problem-solving at scale to tackle the world’s greatest challenges.
• Preserves cultural heritage, enabling communities from around the world to store their stories, information, and knowledge on infrastructure owned by them.

A world with a million nodes would reshape industries, facilitate global collaboration, and lay the foundation for a more resilient, inclusive, and sustainable digital future.

Let us explore, through the power of story, how this can come alive.

🔗Tanzania

Salma, a young entrepreneur coming from an agricultural background in Arusha, runs a small but growing tech company developing mobile apps for local farmers. Her apps collect data from IoT sensors in the fields, helping farmers monitor soil moisture and temperature, optimize water usage, and predict crop yields. Powered by decentralized AI models trained on local data, the insights become increasingly accurate and tailored to the region’s unique conditions.

The apps run smoothly on locally-deployed decentralized infrastructure – the data processing happens seamlessly on the nearest nodes, ensuring low latency and quick insights for farmers. Further, farmers can be assured of 100% data ownership and sovereignty.

The farmers form a local cooperative to share data and knowledge. The decentralized cloud ensures that the data remains secure and private, allowing collective insights to be shared in a trusted way. A peer-to-peer marketplace enables farmers to sell their crops directly to purchasers, meaning they can now receive fair value for their work.

🔗United States

Emma and Will live in a rural community in central Oklahoma, where tornadoes are a regular occurrence during certain times of the year. Emma is an elementary school teacher and Will works construction. Through a federal assistance program, the community has recently integrated its own decentralized cloud network.

Emma uses the network to access online resources and collaborate with educators globally. The local clinic offers telehealth services, so the community can access secure and private healthcare without the need to travel long distances.

Residents use a secure app for community discussions, support networks, local governance decisions, and safety alerts. Sensors across the community monitor weather conditions, while AI models trained on local weather patterns improve the accuracy of predictions, helping residents prepare and respond faster. Data is processed locally on the network, providing early warnings of severe weather events. Alerts are sent directly to residents’ devices. When disaster does strike, part of the decentralized network is able to stay online, supporting rapid communication and coordination and facilitating access to critical information.

🔗India

Amit, a software developer based in Bangalore, is working on a new AI-driven application. His development environment is hosted on the decentralized cloud, giving him immense computational power at his fingertips. Training his AI models is faster and more efficient, utilizing powerful GPUs located close to him, increasing performance and lowering costs.

No longer dependent on centralized cloud, Amit appreciates he can now handle large-scale computations without high costs and the environmental impact associated with traditional data centers.

Amit not only accelerates his AI model training but also develops a mindset of innovation without boundaries. Empowered by seamless scalability and reduced operational costs, Amit channels his energy into refining algorithms that promise to redefine healthcare diagnostics. This newfound agility allows him to iterate rapidly, collaborate globally, and pioneer solutions that bridge the gap between technology and societal impact.

🔗Brazil

In São Paulo, Rosina leads a team of environmental scientists focused on preserving the Amazon rainforest. Their research involves extensive data collection from remote sensors scattered across vast and often inaccessible regions of the rainforest. The data, including temperature, humidity, and biodiversity indicators, is crucial for monitoring climate change impacts and guiding conservation efforts.

Decentralized nodes located strategically across the rainforest process sensor data in real-time. Data collected from the rainforest remains secure and under local ownership. Local indigenous communities, equipped with smartphones, actively participate in data collection and monitoring (and use the decentralized network for the preservation of local culture). The insights derived from the program drive the training of decentralized AI algorithms, contributing to global climate research and advocacy efforts.

🔗A World with a Million Nodes is Possible

This vision of a world with a million nodes connected to the ThreeFold Grid shows how technology can bridge gaps, enhance security, and foster innovation on a global scale. Each node plays a crucial role in building a resilient, inclusive, and efficient digital infrastructure for everyone, everywhere.

From AI development to sustainable farming, digital education to climate science and disaster response, decentralized infrastructure is transforming how people connect and create.

For years, the ThreeFold team and community have been quietly building the foundation. The technology is proven. The network is live. And the world needs what we have been building.

The grid today is a clear collective demonstration that all of this is possible. Scaling to a million nodes is an ambitious goal – but it’s also an invitation. An invitation to co-create a digital world where power is distributed, opportunity is shared, and progress belongs to everyone.

This is more than infrastructure. It’s a movement. One node at a time, we’re building the Internet – and the intelligence – that the world truly needs.

🔗The Problems with Today’s Internet

The Internet was designed decades ago, long before the explosion of data, AI, and global connectivity. Today’s networks route nearly all traffic through a handful of major data centers, creating single points of failure, bottlenecks, and privacy concerns. Internet Service Providers (ISPs), cloud giants, and Content Delivery Networks (CDNs) act as gatekeepers, adding unnecessary costs, control, and surveillance.

Patching the system has only led to more complexity. VPNs, CDNs, and edge computing try to fix inefficiencies but don’t address the root problem of centralization. Legacy protocols like IPv4 force reliance on outdated solutions like Network Address Translation (NAT), a method that allows multiple devices to share a single public IP address, contributing to centralization issues. Meanwhile, the rapid growth of IoT devices and AI-driven applications pushes the limits of this aging architecture. The result? A fragile, monopolized internet that prioritizes corporate profits over user empowerment.

🔗Mycelium: A New Approach to Connectivity

Mycelium is a decentralized networking technology that enables direct, peer-to-peer communication without relying on centralized servers. Instead of routing data through major data centers, Mycelium establishes a distributed network that enhances functionality while remaining compatible with existing applications.

How Mycelium works:

• Decentralized Connectivity: Mycelium routes data efficiently using a mesh-like structure, dynamically adjusting based on user location and available peers. This ensures seamless communication without the need for intermediaries.
• End-to-End Encryption: All connections are secured, preventing man-in-the-middle attacks and ensuring complete privacy.
• Proof of Authenticity (PoA): Identity verification strengthens trust between users and prevents malicious actors from infiltrating the network.
• Optimized Routing: Smart algorithms minimize latency and optimize traffic flow, delivering faster, more efficient connectivity.

🔗A Glimpse into the Future with Mycelium

Imagine waking up in a world where your internet connection isn’t routed through corporate-owned data centers but flows securely between you and those you trust. Your home office connects seamlessly to an encrypted global network. You start your day by accessing files from your personal cloud, which is hosted on your own device, encrypted, and accessible only to you. A quick, secure video call with your team follows, running entirely over Mycelium’s peer-to-peer network, free from surveillance or interference.

Small businesses host their websites and manage their infrastructure without relying on third-party cloud providers. Developers push code to private repositories, ensuring only authorized collaborators have access. Families stream media directly from their home servers, avoiding subscription fees and content restrictions. Even online gaming has been revolutionized. Players host multiplayer sessions on encrypted private servers, eliminating lag and reliance on corporate hosts.

Meanwhile, IoT devices in smart homes and remote workplaces function on secure private networks, safeguarding sensitive data from corporate surveillance. A doctor in a rural village can connect securely with a specialist overseas, sharing critical patient data without privacy concerns. Journalists and activists can communicate without censorship, free from government or corporate monitoring.

🔗The Need for a New Internet

The current internet infrastructure is failing us. Over 70% of global internet traffic depends on expensive transglobal networks, leading to high costs and latency. A simple Zoom call between Uganda and Tanzania may be routed through U.S.-based servers, significantly degrading the experience. With AI-driven systems, agentic computing, and rising cybersecurity threats, centralized control is no longer sustainable.

ThreeFold is pioneering a new internet that is truly decentralized, infinitely scalable, and geo-aware. Built from the ground up on a bare Linux kernel, ThreeFold’s internet stack enables modular, self-healing infrastructure, putting control back in the hands of users. Unlike traditional cloud providers, ThreeFold dynamically shards data with advanced erasure codes, providing security against even quantum computing threats. Its real-time routing algorithms eliminate bottlenecks by optimizing packet travel based on congestion, node availability, and latency.

With 3.5 billion people still offline and AI agents set to scale into the billions, the need for a decentralized internet has never been more urgent. The future isn’t about patching a failing system – it’s about building a better one. Through advancements like Mycelium, ThreeFold is leading the charge, reshaping the internet into what it was meant to be: open, secure, and controlled by people – not corporations.

Learn more about Mycelium via the website and documentation.

🔗A System Held Together by Temporary Fixes

The current Internet relies on “quick fixes” that offer temporary relief but fail to address deeper systemic problems. Security tools like firewalls and antivirus software only guard against known threats and require constant updates. Content delivery networks and bandwidth boosts improve performance but don’t fix the limitations of the core infrastructure. Even regulations like GDPR protect privacy, but they don’t fundamentally change how data is managed or secured. Meanwhile, advances like 5G and fiber optics speed up connectivity but don’t solve the root issue of centralization.

🔗Centralization at the Root of Many Issues

Centralization is at the heart of many persistent issues, such as rising cybersecurity threats. Concentrating data in a few locations increases vulnerabilities, leading to more frequent data breaches and malicious attacks. Big tech companies keep building energy-hungry data centers to meet growing demand, but these are unsustainable and expensive to build.

While energy-efficient hardware is coming to market, it does little to solve these underlying inefficiencies. The deeper problem lies in the centralization of the Internet – a model that concentrates power in the hands of the few. Cloud services like AWS and Google Cloud help businesses scale but can be expensive, complex, and inaccessible to smaller businesses and underserved communities.

At the same time, new technologies like the Internet of Things (IoT) and augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR) demand fast data processing at the edge. Still, centralized cloud platforms are too slow and inefficient to meet their needs.

🔗A Long-Term Cure: ThreeFold’s Solution

To truly fix a system as broken as the current Internet, we need more than temporary solutions – we need a complete transformation that attacks the problem at the root.

Autonomous Infrastructure

One of the solutions to the current Internet crisis is a shift toward autonomous infrastructure networks and data centers that can operate independently, with minimal energy consumption and maximum efficiency. ThreeFold’s decentralized network uses small, autonomous nodes that can be distributed globally. This infrastructure lowers costs, increases reliability, and improves security while addressing the environmental issues tied to the centralized model. Through the ThreeFold Grid, the project is already providing a foundation for the sustainable Internet of the future.

Quantum-Safe Systems

With quantum computing on the horizon, how we secure our Internet infrastructure must evolve. The current Internet isn’t prepared for the threats that quantum computing could pose. ThreeFold recognizes this need and is already creating quantum-safe storage and network systems that protect sensitive information against future threats. This ensures a more resilient Internet that can stand up to tomorrow’s challenges.

Decentralization for Equality

Decentralization can only resolve the imbalance caused by today’s centralized cloud giants. By enabling anyone to host their own infrastructure, ThreeFold’s network levels the playing field and distributes power and opportunity more fairly across the globe. In ThreeFold’s vision, communities, businesses, and individuals can become Internet farmers, contributing to the global network and benefiting from it equally.

🔗Moving Beyond Band-Aid Solutions: Building a Better Internet

The current Internet is broken, and temporary fixes won’t solve the underlying issues. What’s needed is a complete transformation that returns control to the people, reduces environmental impact, and creates a more equitable, accessible digital economy. We must move beyond the the quick fixes and embrace an Internet that is decentralized, sustainable, and secure for all.

ThreeFold is leading the charge by creating an Internet infrastructure that empowers individuals and communities, reduces energy consumption, and fosters innovation. The future of the Internet must reflect the principles of fairness, equality, and sustainability.

It’s time to fix the Internet with ThreeFold. We’re already on the path toward a better, more inclusive digital future.

🔗Autonomous Tech to Empower Individuals & Communities

ThreeFold’s technology is designed to run autonomously, without the need for experts to manage it. The Zero-OS operating system directly interfaces with the hardware, automating complex tasks like server maintenance, security updates, and system management. This allows anyone to easily set up and run a cloud service, contributing to a global network of servers and nodes without requiring advanced technical skills.

By automating these processes, ThreeFold opens the door for more people to participate, and benefit from access to the technology, empowering everyone to have a meaningful impact in the digital world. ThreeFold aims to build a digital world that’s open to everyone, regardless of location, background, or resources.

This means people and communities can own and control their data, applications, and online identities without relying on centralized providers. By equipping communities with these tools, ThreeFold fosters inclusivity, privacy, and digital independence for all.

🔗Solutions for Privacy and Security

In an era plagued by data breaches and privacy concerns that dominate headlines globally, ThreeFold stands out with a comprehensive approach to digital security that includes a Quantum Safe Storage system and Mycelium, a peer-to-peer overlay network developed by our team. And inherently, ThreeFold ensures that your data remains yours and is untampered with by third parties.

ThreeFold’s decentralized architecture uses innovative systems to keep data safe, routes it through the most direct and efficient paths, and keeps it out of the hands of centralized authorities and cyber threats. With ThreeFold, privacy is built into the very fabric of the technology, giving users true ownership and control over their data, free from the risks of traditional internet models.

🔗Promoting Digital Sovereignty

ThreeFold isn’t just about empowering individuals; it’s about giving countries and communities the power to control their own internet. By providing a self-sustaining cloud network, ThreeFold enables nations to build, manage, and own their internet without relying on foreign companies. This independence is crucial in a world where controlling the internet means controlling information.

Beyond digital sovereignty, local internet infrastructure drives job creation in tech, engineering, and support services, stimulating the economy. It attracts investment, fosters innovation, and helps develop local expertise, creating new opportunities in software development, cybersecurity, and data management. By keeping data and operations within their borders, countries can ensure greater privacy and security, strengthen their digital economy, and shape their future in a globally competitive landscape.

🔗Cost Efficiency and Environmental Sustainability

ThreeFold’s decentralized system offers a smarter, more sustainable way to manage data, cutting costs and environmental impact. Unlike traditional networks that rely on expensive central systems, ThreeFold lets data flow directly between nodes using the quickest, most efficient routes. Its Quantum Safe storage system (Fungistor) reduces data overhead from the typical 400% down to just 20%, saving space and costs.

With the farmerbot tool, nodes switch off when not needed and turn on only when required, managed automatically without the need for human operators or central administrators. This is all handled through smart contracts, which keep everything running smoothly and securely. ThreeFold’s peer-to-peer setup finds the fastest path for data and uses local resources, reducing the carbon footprint associated with big data centers. Depending on the use case, this approach can save up to 10 times the energy, showing how ThreeFold drives real impact in creating a greener, more cost-effective internet.

🔗Enhancing Performance and Scalability

Traditional cloud services often struggle with speed and can’t keep up with growing demands. ThreeFold changes this by bringing data processing closer to users, making everything faster and more responsive. With millions of nodes worldwide in the future, ThreeFold will power a faster and more scalable Internet but also ensure that everyone, regardless of location, has access to high-performance digital services.

🔗Building a More Connected and Equitable Future

ThreeFold’s vision is to create a global network that democratizes computing power and storage, enabling a fair internet where users control their data. By working together, we can ensure that the internet is private, innovative, and fair for everyone.

As ThreeFold continues to grow, with new projects like the fourth generation of the Grid—Project Internet Capacity—our goal is to change the digital world for the better. We’re already active in over 50 countries, yet there is a long way to go. Our journey will lead to millions of nodes and new levels of digital security, independence, and fairness.

🔗Conclusion

ThreeFold is more than just a technology company; it’s a movement for a better Internet. ThreeFold is set to make a big difference in today’s world by empowering people, protecting privacy, and supporting independence. We invite you to join us on this journey—together, we can build a digital future that works for everyone.

“All websites are equally accessible.” Net neutrality is a key principle that has been challenged in recent years. Without it, Internet service providers (ISPs) could potentially prioritize or block access to certain websites, affecting the open nature of the Internet.

“The Internet is already decentralized.” While the Internet was originally designed as a decentralized network, much of it is now controlled by a few large corporations, leading to centralization of power and influence. Distributed and decentralized are different things, and even then, the Internet is not all that distributed.

“Everyone Has Access to the Internet.” While the Internet is widely available in many parts of the world, millions of people still lack reliable access due to economic, geographic, and infrastructural barriers. Digital inequality remains a significant global challenge, with rural areas and developing regions (particularly in the global south) often underserved.

“The Internet is free.” While many services on the Internet appear to be free, we often pay with our data. Companies collect and monetize personal information to offer “free” services, leading to privacy concerns. As the saying goes, “if it’s free, the product is you.”

“Online privacy is not a problem anymore.” Many people believe their online activities are private, especially when using “incognito mode” or similar features. In reality, much of what we do online is tracked, logged, and often shared with third parties – despite using privacy-enabling features.

“Well, I have nothing to hide, so privacy isn’t important anyway.” Many believe that if they aren’t doing anything wrong, they don’t need to worry about privacy. In reality, privacy is about controlling who has access to your personal information and how it’s used. Even seemingly harmless data can be collected, analyzed, and exploited in ways that affect your life, your choices, and your freedom.

“Everything on the Internet is true.” There’s a misconception that if something is online, it must be accurate or trustworthy. However, this is far from the truth. Misinformation, fake news, and unreliable sources are widespread, requiring critical thinking and fact-checking, and increasingly hard to differentiate from reality.

“The Internet is anonymous.” Many believe they can remain completely anonymous online, but in reality, most activities leave a digital footprint that can be traced back to the user with enough effort.

“Deleting something online makes it gone forever.” People often believe that deleting a post, message, or file online removes it permanently. However, copies or backups may still exist, and data can often be recovered or traced.

“Cybersecurity threats are overblown.” Some people underestimate the risks of online threats like hacking, phishing, and malware, assuming they won’t be targeted. However, the numbers are startling and everyone is vulnerable.

In an age where, for better or worse, our online interactions shape much of our daily lives, understanding the true nature of the Internet is more and more important. By recognizing misconceptions, we can better navigate the digital world. And the best part? ThreeFold has been working on a true solution to some of the Internet’s biggest challenges.

Dive in to learn more and how to get involved:

• From the ground up: Three inventions that make ThreeFold possible
• The evolution of the Internet: From free to controlled, and back again
• ThreeFold Docs: Litepaper, Tokenomics, Node Guide, & More

🔗The Birth of the Internet

In the 1960s, the internet was born from a simple yet revolutionary idea—a peer-to-peer network that allowed researchers and institutions to connect and share information freely. This early version of the internet was decentralized, with no central authority controlling the data flow. It was a place where collaboration and open communication flourished, laying the groundwork for a digital world built on trust and transparency. The internet was seen as a tool for empowering individuals and fostering a global exchange of ideas, embodying a vision of a free and open digital space.

🔗The Internet Changes

As the internet expanded throughout the 2000s, it became a global phenomenon, with millions of users coming online and businesses quickly recognizing its potential. However, this rapid growth came at a cost. The internet, once a bastion of free and open communication, began to be dominated by commercial interests. Companies saw the vast potential for profit in the digital world and began to exert control over the internet’s infrastructure and the data flowing through it.

This shift toward commercialization led to a more centralized and controlled version of the internet. The original spirit of the internet—one of trust, openness, and decentralized collaboration—started to fade. User data became a valuable commodity, often exploited for profit, and the internet grew increasingly insecure. The once-free and collaborative space became a battleground for control, and the idea of a decentralized internet seemed to be slipping away.

🔗A New Era for the Internet

Today, in 2024, we find ourselves at a pivotal moment in the history of the internet. While it has become an essential part of our lives, the current model is not sustainable. Issues like data privacy, security, and the environmental impact of massive data centers have highlighted the need for change.

In response to these challenges, a new vision for the internet is emerging—one that seeks to restore the principles of sovereignty, security, and sustainability. This vision is being realized by developing ultra-secure, green, scalable, and user-friendly autonomous cloud technologies. These innovations aim to create a more sovereign internet, where users have control over their data and where the infrastructure is more environmentally responsible.

The goal is to return to the original ideals of the internet—open-sourced and decentralized—but with the added benefits of modern technology. By embracing these new technologies and renewing our commitment to decentralization and openness, we can create a better, more secure internet for everyone.

🔗Redefining the Internet: ThreeFold’s Path to Change

The internet’s evolution from a modest, collaborative network to a global powerhouse has been revolutionary, yet this growth has come at a cost. Originally built on principles of openness, decentralization, and the free exchange of information, the internet has increasingly become centralized, commercialized, and fraught with privacy and security concerns. Today, despite its immense power, the internet has strayed from the visionary ideals that once guided its creation. However, there is a growing movement to reclaim the internet’s original promise. By revisiting these foundational principles and embracing new technologies, we have the opportunity to build a digital world that is secure, sustainable, and true to the vision of a free and open internet.

This is where ThreeFold comes in. ThreeFold is pioneering a fundamental shift in how we approach the internet and cloud infrastructure. By building from the ground up, ThreeFold is creating a decentralized autonomous cloud that is truly transformative. Unlike traditional cloud services, which are often centralized and controlled by a few major players, ThreeFold’s infrastructure is distributed across a network of 3Nodes—hardware deployed locally by individuals and communities worldwide.

This decentralized approach offers significant benefits: it enhances security by reducing single points of failure, lowers costs by leveraging local resources, increases energy efficiency by processing data closer to the source, and provides unmatched scalability to meet global demand. By empowering individuals to contribute to and benefit from this network, ThreeFold is helping to create a sovereign internet—one that is owned by the people, for the people.

ThreeFold’s vision goes beyond technology: it’s about returning to the core values that once defined the internet. By fostering genuine collaboration, respecting privacy, and ensuring that the internet remains open and accessible to all, ThreeFold is helping to usher in a new era. In this era, the internet will not only connect us but also empower us, enabling a more equitable, secure, and sustainable digital future.