I’m seeing Walrus as infrastructure rather than a trend. Most blockchains aren’t made to hold large files, so Walrus handles that part for them.
When someone uploads data, Walrus turns it into a blob, splits it, and erasure-codes it so the file can be recovered even if some storage nodes go offline. Sui is used to manage payments, staking, and proofs that the data is still being stored correctly.
WAL is the token that powers this system. Users pay to store data for a fixed period, while node operators and stakers earn rewards for keeping the data available. They’re expected to stay reliable, or they risk penalties.
Blobs are public by default, so encryption is handled by the user if privacy is needed. The goal isn’t to replace cloud storage overnight, but to give apps, creators, and teams a decentralized option that can be verified and doesn’t rely on one provider.