Foundations

Core Design Principles

Irys is built around a small set of architectural properties that directly shape how the protocol operates.

This section will give you a high-level view of these properties, while later sections will dive deeper.

• Data persists as network state

  Data written to Irys is intended to remain available for defined durations, including permanent storage. Once promoted to the Publish Ledger, data becomes part of the network's long-term state. Miners are economically responsible for maintaining its availability, and the protocol continuously verifies that it remains retrievable.

• Execution designed around stored data
  The planned Programmable Data interface would let smart contracts access existing datasets during execution, allowing applications to interpret, coordinate and apply logic to shared onchain data.
• Verification is enforced by the protocol

  Availability of stored data on Irys is enforced through:

  • Ingress proofs during promotion
  • Ten replicas per ledger slot, on distinct miners
  • Random sampling of storage ranges
  • Stake slashing for failure

  Applications rely on these guarantees without implementing their own storage verification mechanisms.

• Storage and execution are managed separately

  Irys separates storage and execution in its architecture, with Programmable Data planned as an additional form of network activity. The design accounts for these activities independently through dedicated transaction pathways.

  Because these components operate independently:

  • Storage pricing can track underlying hardware costs.
  • Execution demand does not increase storage costs.
  • Storage demand does not distort execution fees.

  The protocol therefore does not rely on a single fee market to sustain the network. The economic model combines storage and execution with a future contribution from Programmable Data usage.

  This structure allows applications to plan around stable costs and predictable system behavior over time.