Aptos Labs and Jump Crypto Launch Shelby for High-Frequency Web3 Workloads

Aptos Labs and Jump Crypto have joined forces to launch Shelby, a decentralized hot storage network designed to support continuous, high-frequency Web3 workloads. This network aims to revolutionize data handling for applications that require video streaming, social timelines, AI pipelines, or decentralized physical infrastructure (DePIN) with cloud-level speed. Shelby leverages global high-performance nodes, fiber backbone, and on-chain programmable architecture to achieve cloud-level read and write speed and reliability. This breakthrough addresses the centralization and performance bottlenecks of traditional Web2 services, offering features such as sub-second response time, pay-as-you-go billing, token gating, DRM, smart contract permission control, and dynamic pricing capabilities.

Shelby is designed to tap into Aptos (APT) to address the gap in existing decentralized infrastructure protocols, with its chain-agnostic architecture offering sub-second reads. Apart from millisecond settlement, Shelby ensures ease of access and monetization. Jump Crypto highlighted the need for Shelby, stating that while blockchains today have mostly solved the ability to execute code, they cannot access large datasets. More importantly, they cannot serve large datasets at scale and speed. Hence, Shelby is being built to fill this gap.

Projects such as Metaplex, Story Protocol, and Pipe Network are among the first to integrate Shelby, with early contributors and collaborators including Myco, DoubleZero, and Flashback Labs, across streaming, infra, and AI respectively. Aptos will be Shelby’s early settlement layer, allowing for sub-second finality and high-throughput coordination, with real-time data access across any chain. David Rhodus, founder of Permissionless Labs, a core contributor to the Pipe Network, commented on the upcoming launch, stating that the global high-performance storage network makes more data available for the Pipe Network to serve at high throughput. The Point of Presence nodes will ensure a smoother user experience because the DePIN-enabled footprint provides large coverage of last-mile endpoints in the areas where Shelby doesn’t have connectivity.

Shelby stands out from previous decentralized storage systems, which are often considered "cold" or slow and static. Shelby's "hot" data primitive aims to deliver near-immediate response times for decentralized data sourcing, making it suitable for applications that demand quick access to data. This innovative approach not only enhances technical capabilities but also introduces a new business model for Web3 applications. A spokesperson from Aptos Labs highlighted the innovative business model that Shelby introduces. Unlike legacy platforms that monetize user content and data, Shelby empowers creators and platforms with control over pricing, access, and monetization. This shift not only enhances technical capabilities but also introduces a new business model for Web3 applications. The spokesperson further elaborated on Shelby's potential, stating that it enables the creation of apps that Web3 has been waiting for. Creators can launch pay-per-view video, token-gated content, or time-based access with logic enforced directly on-chain. Additionally, AI training can benefit from instant access to datasets, providing a new foundation for programmable, revenue-generating apps.

This collaboration comes at a time when the decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol Aave has voted to expand to Aptos, marking the first time the lending protocol will operate on a non-Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) blockchain. Jump Crypto has also re-introduced itself as the builders behind some of the most ambitious projects in crypto, with its parent company playing a central role in underpinning Terra’s stablecoin ecosystem, which collapsed in May 2022.