LinqProtocol is a decentralized cloud computing platform that connects developers directly with bare-metal compute providers through an on-chain marketplace. It offers Kubernetes-compatible infrastructure with escrow-protected payments, transparent pricing, and savings of up to 82% compared to major cloud providers like AWS, GCP, and Azure.
Funding
Funding not disclosed
Founders
Product
Problem
Cloud computing is dominated by a few large centralized providers that impose opaque pricing, vendor lock-in, and significant markup on compute resources. Millions of GPUs and servers sit idle worldwide while developers overpay for infrastructure, and the lack of price transparency makes it difficult to predict or control cloud spending.
Solution
LinqProtocol provides a decentralized compute marketplace where developers deploy Kubernetes workloads directly on a network of independent bare-metal providers, eliminating middlemen and their associated overhead. The platform uses smart contract-based escrow to hold funds in LNQ tokens until work is completed, ensuring providers only get paid when they deliver. Developers select from 50+ production-ready templates or deploy custom containers, configure resources, and pay on-chain via WalletConnect with no credit cards or invoices required. The protocol includes enterprise-grade features like multi-pod orchestration, Cloudflare tunnels, custom domains, and Kubernetes service discovery, all without provider-side port forwarding. By leveraging unused capacity from independent providers and removing data center overhead, LinqProtocol achieves cost reductions of 72-90% across compute, memory, storage, and egress compared to AWS, GCP, and Azure.
Target Audience
Primary customers are developers, DevOps teams, and Web3-native companies seeking cost-effective cloud infrastructure, as well as enterprises looking to reduce cloud spend while maintaining production-grade Kubernetes workloads.
Features
- Decentralized Kubernetes orchestration supporting real multi-pod production deployments with battle-tested infrastructure
- On-chain escrow system using LNQ (ERC-20) tokens where funds are locked in smart contracts and only released to providers upon verified delivery
- 50+ pre-configured deployment templates including Open WebUI, GitHub Runners, and Grafana+Prometheus stacks with one-click deployment
- Transparent per-resource pricing with zero egress fees, no hidden charges, and no load balancer or NAT gateway costs
- Built-in networking via Cloudflare tunnels, platform routes, and custom domain support with automatic TLS certificates
- Comprehensive monitoring suite including Loki-backed workload logs, resource metrics dashboards, and availability history tracking
- Token-gated access with LNQ utility for escrow funding, provider payments, and protocol fee settlement
- Enterprise options including volume discounts, reserved capacity, OTC payments, and dedicated support