Today we're excited to formally announce the launch of The Status Network - an ecosystem of products, developer tools, and infrastructure to empower local communities to transact securely, communicate freely, and organize with confidence.

Products, Tools & Infrastructure

When we first started building Status it quickly became apparent that if we were to tackle problems only at the application layer, we’d be waiting a long time to reach our goals. If you’ve ever built a centralized web2 application, it’s easy to take for granted the existing infrastructure, frameworks and tooling available that has been built up over decades.

Over the past two years we’ve found ourselves investing increasingly further down the web3 stack into the protocol-level infrastructure needed to support our requirements, and requirements of developers who also believe in a secure, open internet.

Nimbus rose from the need to push Ethereum 2.0 forward on mobile - to help enable equal access and a direct connection to the Ethereum network even on resource-constricted devices.

Whisper, perhaps the only messaging protocol with the desired privacy properties to use within Status App isn’t without its scalability issues, so Vac - a modular peer-to-peer messaging stack - was born to address this.

Embark and Subspace have been funded to reduce the burden developers face when building truly peer-to-peer applications - and to foster a vibrant ecosystem of consumer Dapps anyone can access via the Status App or any web3 browser.

We created Keycard to bring low-cost, secure hardware wallets to mobile, and form the foundation of an open payment network. Teller was developed to onboard people into crypto, and Assemble is launching soon to incentivize the growth of the Network by encouraging more teams and developers to participate in our open source community.

The variety of projects we’re supporting can be split into three broad categories - products, developer tools, and infrastructure. Together they form The Status Network.

Stronger Together

Status Network projects are open source for anyone to use, build upon and adapt to suit their needs. By building at different layers in the web3 stack, we aim to provide modular sets of tools and infrastructure - which can be used together or separately.

There are a few key properties that tie projects in the network together:

  • Design: Status Network projects are designed and built to be modular and interoperable. While projects are not required or limited to only work with one another, they are designed with interoperability in mind.
  • Cryptoeconomics: The Status Network Token (SNT) is the native token in the Status Network, and each project in the network can add SNT support if desired. It acts as a multi-purpose token that governs the network, powers product features, and incentivizes ongoing initiatives.
  • Status Principles: The Status Network has a mission driven by our Principles, which act as connective tissue uniting projects and giving them a shared and powerful “Why?”

The Mission Behind the Network

The promise of making it easy to access the decentralized web, given its potential impact, is why we first started developing Status. Fast-forward to 2019, why it’s needed is more apparent than ever - one doesn't have to look far to see how centralized institutions are abusing our digital rights or data for their own gain.

We aim to empower local communities that seek greater sovereignty, by providing the necessary tools and infrastructure to communicate, organize, and govern themselves - free from surveillance and centralized institutions.

Our focus is on making the technology usable and practical for real people, in the real world, facing real issues. These issues are not purely financial nor are they simply social.

Our technology stack aims to provide people with:

  • Secure communication: apps for private communication and the freedom to organize.
  • Frictionless commerce: tools to trade and access open financial services.
  • Mobile friendly solutions: mobile-first development enables equal access even in the most remote areas of the world.

Every community has different needs, and projects in the Status Network are made to empower people in situations where privacy is paramount, or where existing financial institutions aren’t serving their communities interests.

Whether it is secure, ready-made products, funding needed work, or to allow groups to build their own tools for freedom, we’re committed to providing the technology necessary to uphold human rights.

Join the Status Network

Status is an open source project and we hope you’ll join us in our efforts to aid sovereign communities who seek greater independence and economic opportunity.

Everything we do is open source. Participation is permissionless -  and we’re encouraging developers, makers, builders, organizers, writers, designers, teachers, learners, activists, economists, communicators, and anyone else to get involved. Many have already begun.  

Learn more, ask questions, and get involved at statusnetwork.com. If you have questions about The Status Network reach out in the Status Discussion Forum or in Status.

Learn more about The Status Network on our new website here.