Protocol Design for Cycle cover
Case Study

Protocol Design for Cycle

ArchitectureWeb3

About

Existing decentralized storage networks like Filecoin and Arweave, while foundational, operate in siloed ecosystems. They lack the deep integration with Ethereum, native privacy, and programmable ownership required by institutions to securely manage and share sensitive data with trusted partners, regulators, and other stakeholders.

My mission was to conduct a comprehensive feasibility study and design the technical architecture for a new protocol, Cycle, that would solve these challenges. The goal was to architect a unified, Ethereum-aligned DePIN solution that combined cutting-edge L2 infrastructure with robust privacy and economic incentives from the ground up.

The challenge was to architect a DePIN protocol from first principles, combining an L2 rollup, an EigenLayer AVS, and threshold encryption to meet institutional demands for a fully programmable, private, and Ethereum-native storage solution.

Work

  • [x] Conducted an in-depth feasibility study and market analysis to identify the critical gaps in existing DePIN solutions, focusing on their lack of interoperability, native privacy, and institutional-grade features.
  • [x] Architected a novel, multi-component protocol that integrates an Arbitrum-based L2 rollup with EigenDA for data availability, an EigenLayer AVS for incentivized IPFS pinning, and the Threshold Network's TACo for native, programmable privacy.
  • [x] Designed the core tokenomics for the native $CYCLE token, outlining its role in gas fees, service payments, operator staking, and reward distribution to ensure a self-sustaining economic ecosystem.
  • [x] Authored the complete protocol litepaper1, detailing the architecture, component interactions, and strategic market positioning.

Results

  • Delivered a comprehensive feasibility study and a complete technical blueprint for a next-generation DePIN protocol.
  • Proposed a novel architecture that unifies decentralized storage, programmable data ownership, and native privacy in a fully Ethereum-aligned ecosystem.
  • Provided a clear, strategic path forward for the development of a protocol designed to meet the specific, unmet needs of institutional users in Web3 and beyond.

Resources

  1. Cycle Protocol Litepaper (Litepaper)

This research and architectural design laid the complete groundwork for Cycle, a next-generation protocol poised to solve the critical challenges of privacy and interoperability in decentralized storage.