Aptos Labs and Jump Crypto have partnered to introduce Shelby, the first cloud-grade decentralized hot storage infrastructure designed to provide fast, monetizable storage for data-heavy web3 applications.
Shelby aims to solve a significant limitation in current blockchain systems: the inability to serve large datasets at high speed and scale. The network supports sub-second data reads and millisecond settlement times, coupled with ease of access and monetization capabilities.
The new protocol targets applications requiring real-time data such as video streaming, AI inference, composable in-game assets, social dynamic NFTs, and decentralized physical infrastructure networks (DePIN). Its chain-agnostic architecture enables seamless data access and coordination across blockchains.
Jump Crypto emphasized the motivation behind building Shelby, noting that while most blockchains can execute code effectively, they cannot currently handle large data sets or serve them rapidly at scale, a gap Shelby addresses.
Early collaborators on the Shelby project include Metaplex and Pipe Network on Solana (SOL), Story (an intellectual property blockchain), Myco, DoubleZero, and Flashback Labs, which specialize in streaming, infrastructure, and AI.
Shelby will initially use Aptos (APT) as its settlement layer, leveraging Aptos’s sub-second finality and high throughput for secure and swift coordination.
Following the announcement, Aptos’s token (APT) experienced a notable 20% price increase, reflecting strong market optimism about the project’s potential to transform decentralized storage and bring web3 applications closer to traditional cloud speeds.
The initiative represents a significant opportunity to disrupt large parts of the existing cloud services market dominated by centralized providers such as AWS, offering a decentralized, blockchain-based alternative with high performance and scalability.