Protocol Foundation

Tangle is the shared operating layer for autonomous work. The protocol coordinates operator-run services and routes payments. Developers publish Blueprints, users instantiate them on demand, and operators run them for a fee.

Today vs Future

Today the protocol ships with managed onboarding and a curated operator set. Over time it evolves into an open marketplace where operators host runtime services and earn based on reliability and usage.

Build Composable Services

Blueprints are composable services that can be instantiated by users. They are built using the Blueprint SDK and can integrate with external security providers when needed.

Earn as a Service Operator

Operators can earn rewards by operating Blueprint instances requested by users. Operators register for Blueprints and maintain control over the services they run, selecting the resources they want to expose for securing the Blueprint.

Maximize Resource Utilization

Tangle enables shared security across Blueprints, allowing operators to secure multiple Blueprints with a single pool of resources and participants to earn rewards proportional to the value secured.

Who This Is For

• Builders who want to package services as Blueprints and ship them on demand. Build with Blueprints
• Operators who want to run services reliably and earn service fees. Operator onboarding
• Stakers who want to back operators and earn from usage. Economic security

How Services Work

Tangle Network employs a modular architecture to enable the creation and deployment of reusable services called Blueprints:

Blueprints

A Blueprint is a specification that defines a service. Blueprints themselves are not live service instances. Developers create Blueprints by specifying a service binary (artifact), the jobs involved, a set of smart contracts for registration and requesting instances, and additional metadata. Users instantiate services by configuring the operator set and paying the necessary fees. Read more about Blueprints

Economic Security on Blueprints

Economic security backs operators who run services based on Blueprints. Operators register for services and agree through the smart contract logic to run Blueprint service instances when requested. Read more about economic security

Requesting Service Instances

Users deploy live service instances using a Blueprint’s request functionality. The requester specifies criteria like the number of operators or other operator attributes. A specific subset of qualified operators is then selected to run that service instance.

We aim to support fine-grained controls over requesting instances, such as specifying the number of operators, the operator set, and other operator attributes. This allows users to customize their service instances based on their requirements.

Incentives

Operators earn service fees for running Blueprint instances and may earn optional TNT incentives if governance funds them. Developers earn a share of service fees and can also receive optional TNT incentives based on activity metrics.

This separation into Blueprints and instances allows services to be defined once but instantiated multiple times by different users with varying operator requirements. Blueprint developers benefit from their work being utilized widely across ecosystems and applications.

Use Cases

Tangle is a protocol for reusable cryptographic and AI services. It supports complex workloads that need verifiable execution and reliable operator incentives. Key service areas include:

• Privacy Infrastructure: Tangle provides a foundation for enabling privacy-preserving solutions through technologies like multi-party computation (MPC) and zero-knowledge proofs.

• Oracles: Build decentralized oracle services that can securely feed off-chain data to blockchains using Tangle’s threshold signatures and MPC primitives.

• AI/ML: Offer secure and scalable AI inference, fine-tuning, and evaluation services through operator-hosted runtimes.

• Custody Solutions: Leverage Tangle’s cryptographic services to create distributed custody solutions with robust security guarantees.

• Bridges: Develop cross-chain bridges and asset movement solutions using Tangle’s MPC co-processors and private bridging capabilities.

• Zero-Knowledge Services: Implement applications leveraging zero-knowledge proofs, such as zero-knowledge machine learning (ZKML) projects, using Tangle’s proof generation services.

• Novel Cryptographic Applications: Tangle’s modular architecture and rich cryptographic library enable developers to build innovative applications requiring advanced cryptographic primitives.

The core vision of Tangle is to provide infrastructure for developers to create and monetize a wide array of services with reliable execution and clear incentives. Developers are rewarded for valuable Blueprints, and operators are rewarded for dependable service delivery.