peaq, the layer-1 blockchain for DePIN and Machine RWAs (real-world assets), announces the expansion of its ecosystem as ATOR joins in as the privacy layer for DePINs building on peaq. ATOR is the DePIN network building the world’s largest global anonymous routing ecosystem. It will expand its liquidity to peaq and conduct a deeper technical integration unlocking its network for other DePINs in the peaq ecosystem.
As more and more people grow aware of the privacy risks we all face in today’s hyper-connected world, online anonymity is ever more urgent. For all their value, most of the options available to people today, such as VPNs or the Tor network, have their own flaws stemming from being too centralized. Many free VPNs double as data aggregation services, tracking their own users, and the Tor network, while being in many ways an exemplary work of pro-anonymity engineers and activists, is bottlenecked by its limited supply of volunteer relay nodes and largely limited to web browsers.
ATOR harnesses the well-established onion routing technology, leveraging the DePIN model to build a growing, incentivized network of nodes. Its network does not rely on centralized authority nodes, instead leveraging a fully-distributed architecture that makes it more resilient and secure. It is also primed for working as an interoperable privacy layer for dApps and other DePINs, enabling them to natively tap into the ATOR network seamlessly using their SDK.
As part of its integration with peaq, ATOR will expand its liquidity to the network, bridging its token with the layer-1 for DePINs. This would enable the DePINs building on peaq to leverage the network as a plug-and-play privacy layer, routing and encrypting their traffic through ATOR’s community-owned relays. ATOR will also explore tapping peaq’s multi-chain IDs and other Modular DePIN Functions for its own DePIN of relays.
“Online surveillance and privacy infringements are growing more egregious by the day,” says Saunder, an engineer at ATOR. “And over half of internet users consider it to be a priority. As DePINs transform industries and connected infrastructure, they must offer their communities a level of privacy without compromising the user experience. With ATOR, DePINs building on peaq will be able to do just that, and we are excited to be moving ahead with this integration.”
“Secure and anonymous traffic is a major component of Web3’s promise of a more privacy-focused and self-sovereign Internet,” says Till Wendler, co-founder of peaq. “ATOR’s anonymity stack makes it a valuable architecture component for any DePIN, and we are certain that it will create a lot of value for the ecosystem.”
