There are two schools of thought in the data track.

Walrus represents the modular reality PI.
Irys represents the vertical integration ideal PI.

Walrus has been launched and is running on Sui. It proves that decentralized storage can be assembled in a modular way: using Sui for settlement and incentives, while its own node network is responsible for storage. The biggest advantage of this architecture is that it can be implemented quickly and leverage the ecosystem, so we can see Walrus being used rapidly in the fields of NFT, gaming, and AI model storage. The deflationary mechanism of WAL and the dollar-denominated storage prices also make it more predictable in terms of the economic model, which is a very practical path!

Irys is another extreme. It doesn't want to piece together building blocks but rather to create a complete system on its own. From the consensus layer, virtual machines to data ledgers, full-stack self-research, integrating storage, computing, and incentives onto a single chain. This means that data can not only be stored but also utilized. Smart contracts can directly read and write data, execute logic, call files, just like you would operate on a local database. Architecturally, this is a design that is closer to the foundational layer of data intelligence. However, it hasn't had its TGE yet and is still in the cold start phase. The real value will only be visible to the market after miners come online and the data volume increases.

So in the short term, Walrus is a proven reality: there is income, traffic, and a deflationary token economy. In the medium to long term, Irys has a story with greater potential! If it can integrate data and execution, it will be a paradigm shift for the entire data chain track.

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Summary

Walrus has already proven that decentralized storage is viable; Irys may prove that decentralized data is viable. One is the robustness of the present, and the other is the direction of the future! I am optimistic about both projects, and in the future, the advantages of these two projects will only become more apparent!

#KaitoYap @KaitoAI @irys_xyz #Yap @josh_benaron #Irys @WalrusProtocol