Foundations

What is Irys?

Irys is a blockchain designed to store large volumes of data onchain for flexible durations, with storage verification built into the protocol. Its planned Programmable Data interface would let smart contracts use stored bytes directly during execution.

Most blockchains are optimized for execution. Storage exists primarily to support contract state and transaction data required for consensus. Because stored data must be maintained and validated as part of the execution layer, storage is constrained and priced to discourage large or persistent datasets.

Datachains emerged to address this limitation by prioritizing storage at the protocol level, making it economically feasible to write data onchain. However, early datachains were designed for archival use cases: data could be stored, but it was not directly usable within applications.

Irys brings storage, execution and verifiability into one network architecture. Applications can store and retrieve data through its storage tools. Programmable Data is the planned native connection between those stored bytes and smart contract execution.

At a high level, Irys provides:

• Onchain data storage at scale
  Large datasets can be stored either permanently or for a defined term, with storage costs designed to reflect physical hardware costs.
• Planned native data access
  Programmable Data would let IrysVM contracts apply logic directly to shared stored data during execution.
• Protocol-level verifiability
  The network enforces guarantees about data availability, integrity, and accountability through cryptographic storage proofs and economic incentives.
• Predictable system behavior
  Storage, execution, and verification operate as distinct components within the protocol so that growth in one area does not interfere with the others.

Programmable Data status

Programmable Data is in development and is not live yet. It is the planned native interface for accessing stored bytes during smart contract execution.

Storage uploads and retrieval are available today. Start with the storage quickstart and network guide.

The sections that follow describe how this system is implemented: how data moves through the network, how it becomes verifiable, how execution interacts with storage, and how the protocol enforces its guarantees.