What is iExec?
Ever feel like your computer is more sluggish than a normie at Starbucks on a Monday morning? Maybe this is not really your fault. Our computers have a harder time computing more complex tasks in line with technological advancements. If you want a boost on your processing power for cheap, iExec is here to save the day.
iExec can be explained as ridesharing, only it's for computing power. If you have a complex model to render, or a really tough time training your AI, the easiest way is to rent some of that computing power from other machines from all over the world. For a fair price, you can get the job done without having to invest in a master race PC.
iExec derives its value from its decentralized cloud computing service. In other words, iExec has created a decentralized network of computers that split the computing power to execute on the task you have requested. Compared to centralized cloud providers, payments on iExec are done in a trustless manner, removing other costly intermediaries.
The protocol also has its native token, RLC, which is used to pay for computing resources on the platform. Users can earn RLC by contributing their own computing resources to the network, creating a decentralized marketplace for computing power. Anyone can rent his computing power without doing KYC.
Individuals and businesses alike are free to use the iExec Marketplace as either a service provider or customer. However, enterprise blockchain users often require more robust services that are more strictly compliant with financial regulations. To that end, iExec has created an Enterprise Marketplace that is specifically designed to allow enterprise users to exchange decentralized cloud resources in an on-chain environment. The Enterprise Marketplace has a built in KYC and follows AML procedures.
What both marketplaces have in common is that they are regulated by smart contracts. Using smart contracts, iExec is able to create a reputation system, which gives users a transparent and immutable indicator when assessing service options. Since its launch in 2016, iExec has never been hacked.
How does iExec work?
iExec is a decentralized cloud computing platform built on Ethereum. The protocol creates a secure and scalable ecosystem where developers can access computing power and storage from a global network.
At a closer glance, iExec combines off-chain computation with on-chain guarantees to deliver on its service. According to the team, the resource intensive nature of iExec's supported dapps and smart contracts best works in an off-chain environment. This is made possible through the use of XtremWeb-HEP, which is an open-source protocol that pools unused computing resources for use by third-party applications and platforms.
XtremeWeb-HEP is the creation of the iExec team, and comes with all the features required to facilitate enterprise-scale computational power in a secure yet verifiable off-chain environment. More specifically, the software is resilient against malicious takeovers, supports public/private IT infrastructures, and enables convenient data management, security, and accountability features.
In order to streamline their service in a seamless manner, iExec relies on two type of stakeholders: workers and schedulers.
Workers provide computational resources as requested by the clients, and get paid in RLC. These workers can operate independently, or pool their resources with other workers, and their work assignments are determined by a scheduler.
As their name suggests, schedulers to organize workers into working pools, delegate user tasks to workers, and score the quality of workers’ inputs. Schedulers are rewarded with RLC tokens for helping manage iExec’s market infrastructure.
Once the workers have been selected for the task, proof of their involvement is posted on-chain, while the actual processing happens off-chain. The workers' schedule is transparently posted on-chain in order to avoid dishonest behavior.
iExec bridges the XtremeWeb-HEP protocol with its cloud computing marketplace using its Proof of Contribution (PoCo) consensus. It is a unique consensus that ensures the trust between the customer and the workers. PoCo consensus also keeps note of the reputation score when assigning a task to the workers.
From outside, the customer sees a user-friendly interface where workers have their computational power displayed along with their reputation score. Selecting workers for the task is as simple as posting an announcement. Once the workers apply, they can get down to work and compute your request.
How to make money on iExec?
Money can be made on iExec by renting your computing power on the iExec marketplace. As a worker, you get rewarded in RLC depending on your available computing power and the complexity of the task.
Some of the preliminary requirements in order to sign up: your computer needs at least 2 CPUs, RLC must be deposited to your iExec account in order to stake for incoming tasks, and you need to keep your computer on for the duration of the task.
Staking is a security feature to prevent spam attacks. This mechanism requires workers to lock up some RLC as a security deposit for the duration of the task. The higher the computation reward, the higher must be the worker’s stake in order to have a chance to work on that computation and claim the reward. In case the workers behave maliciously, their stake of RLC tokens will be lost.
The process of signing up as a worker on iExec and the setup can get technical quite fast. If you want to get started properly you should watch the full walkthrough.
Price Prediction for iExec — Can it hit $1000?
Buying and hodling RLC — the native token of iExec — is one way of potentially making money on iExec.
By looking at its current price, it’s natural to think about the chance of RLC hitting $1000 per token. This can happen sooner, or way in the future, and is determined by a couple of ever changing factors.
Let’s examine the potential growth of the RLC token by analyzing its tokenomics. RLC’s current market cap sits comfortably at ${MARKET_CAP}. With {CIRCULATING_SUPPLY} RLC tokens being in circulation today, that means a price of {PRICE} per RLC.
How did we come to that calculation? It’s quite easy, the price of a RLC token is equal to its current market cap divided by the number of tokens in circulation. Dividing ${MARKET_CAP} by {CIRCULATING_SUPPLY} gives us a result of {PRICE} for each RLC coin.
By changing the order in the simple formula above we can use it to calculate other things as well. This helps us a lot because we can deduce the market cap of RLC at different token prices. Then, we can use the result to compare it to the current state of the network and see what would be required for RLC to hit that price.
At a price of $1000 per token, that means the current market cap of RLC would equal ${{CIRCULATING_SUPPLY} * 1000}. Remember that we arrived at this number by multiplying the amount of circulating tokens by $1000.
Now let’s shift our attention to the fully diluted market cap.
Some blockchains may have their tokenomics built in a way that only a small percentage of tokens are circulating at the beginning. This can be misleading because we don’t have the full picture and only take into account the current number of coins released in the market.
The fully diluted market cap represents the total value of a coin if all tokens were in circulation. RLC’s whole supply of tokens is {MAX_SUPPLY - TOTAL_SUPPLY + CIRCULATING_SUPPLY} RLC which means that no more coins above that number will ever be created.
These tokens are not created at the discretion of a specific entity. They are created automatically by the network to reward different actors that keep it secure.
How does this impact the price of RLC? Taking into account the current price of a RLC token, that would result in a fully diluted market cap of ${MAX_SUPPLY - TOTAL_SUPPLY + CIRCULATING_SUPPLY * PRICE}. RLC coins that have been burned are not taken into consideration because they have been permanently removed from circulation.
Whether it seems gigantic or not, the number we came to above only takes into account the current price of a RLC token. Doing the same calculation but with a price of $1000 gives us a result of ${{MAX_SUPPLY - TOTAL_SUPPLY + CIRCULATING_SUPPLY} * 1000} for the RLC protocol fully diluted market cap.
These are all crucial details to know when calculating if RLC can reach the price of $1000 per token. If the diluted market capitalization is way too high, the token has little room left to grow. Blockchains in general have no cap on the value they can reach, whether that number seems possible it’s totally up to you.
The future of RLC depends solely on its growth as a network used by tens and hundreds of millions of users.
If you’re looking to add some RLC to your portfolio, the most trusted places to get some are Binance and Coinbase.