The native token, $WAL, is the "fuel" of the ecosystem. It serves three main purposes:
Payment: Users pay in $WAL to store data for a specific duration.
Staking: Node operators stake $WAL to participate in the network. If they lose your data, they lose their stake (slashing).
Governance: Token holders can vote on protocol upgrades and network parameters.
3. Key Use Cases
AI Models: Storing massive training datasets and model weights in a way that is verifiable and permanent.
NFTs and Gaming: Hosting high-resolution images, videos, and 3D assets that won't disappear if a specific website goes down.
Decentralized Websites: "Walrus Sites" allows developers to host entire websites directly on the network, making them resistant to censorship.
4. Integration with Sui
While it can be used by other chains (like Ethereum or Solana), it is deeply integrated with the Sui blockchain. This allows smart contracts to "program" storage—for example, a contract could automatically renew a storage lease or trigger a data update without human intervention.
