Cloudflare, the Internet networking giant, is affirming its interest in Proof-of-Stake (PoS) consensus models and specifically in the upcoming Ethereum (ETH) Merge. The company wishes to exploit nodes of this blockchain and is, on the other hand, critical of the Proof-of-Work (PoW).
Cloudflare wants to invest in Ethereum (ETH)
Cloudflare, the American web giant has expressed interest in the Proof-of-Stake (PoS) model of Consensus Layer, namely, the form that Ethereum (ETH) will take after the famous Merge.
Cloudflare sees the Proof-of-Stake model, and especially Ethereum’s, as the future of Web 3.0, so that’s why the company wants to deploy validation nodes to secure this blockchain, once it changes its consensus model.
In addition, the company is confident about the added value it can bring to the network, especially through its solutions based on an InterPlanetary File System (IPFS) protocol. The latter allows for geographic decentralization of data storage, unlike traditional Web data centers, as they are mostly built today.
By extension, Cloudflare is also opening its gateway and storage services for Ethereum to the general public.
A critical view towards the Proof-of-Work
In its report, Cloudflare is skeptical about the viability of the Proof-of-Work (PoW) model on which Bitcoin (BTC) is based, for example. For the company, the complexity of the calculations necessary to solve the mathematical enigma inherent in this consensus is such that it generates a colossal waste of energy.
This brings us back to the eternal debate that divides the supporters of both models. If Bitcoin’s high energy consumption is a fact, it is often put in perspective with the low scalability of the network. However, the Lightning Network offers a very high capacity. All this without increasing energy consumption.
There are obviously advantages and disadvantages to each blockchain technology and it may never be possible to reconcile each philosophy. The most important thing is to stay tuned to the different developments, in order to be able to take advantage of the future, which is currently being built.
