iExec RLC (ticker symbol: RLC) is a cryptocurrency. As of December 28th 2017, the circulating supply was 79,070,793 RLC.

iExec is a platform for decentralized cloud computing, so think IBM or Microsoft cloud services but broken up into multiple nodes for off-chain computing of blockchain applications.

It’s a similar concept to Golem (supercomputing) and Siacoin (cloud storage), except it’s using cloud services for processing power.

Its target audience is the blockchain realm itself and its budding ecosystem of dApps.

In order to support dApps, smart contracts, and their platforms, iExec takes processing-intensive computations off-chain so as to keep a blockchain’s on-chain functions running smoothly.

To do this, iExec makes use of XtremWeb-HEP, an open-sourced Desktop Grid Software.

Desktop Grid computing (also known as Volunteer Computing) pools unused computing resources to be used by applications and platforms, and according to iExec’s whitepaper, XtremWeb-HEP “implements all the needed features” to make this possible on a global scale, including “fault-tolerance, multi-applications, multi-users, hybrid public/private infrastructure, deployment of virtual images, data management, security and accountability, and many more.”

Essentially, with this software, dApps can utilize any computing resource in the iExec framework to run their programs.

This means that developers and dApp users can commission processing power from a resource as small as a PC’s CPU to as large as a warehouse-sized data center.

Options will be flexible, scalable, and free-market driven, allowing users to find just the right amount of computing power for the task at hand.

iExec accomplishes this service matching using its smart contracts.

The Matchmaking algorithm, for example, takes resource requests on the network and matches them with an appropriate provider.

This smart contract basically looks at a dApp’s task and asks, “Can this computing resource run this program?” If yes, then it’s a match made in heaven.

If not, then it’s time to move on (nothing personal).

In order to ensure that users are getting the resources they need, iExec uses a Proof of Contribution model.

This consensus algorithm makes sure that a provider provisions the computational power needed by the user, and it rewards this provider with RLC, iExec’s token, in return for these services.

Taking a step outside of the software and technicals, let’s take a look at the pieces that make up iExec’s platform.

These include its marketplace, dApp store, and data marketplace.

Marketplace: The marketplace is iExec’s hub for providers and users to exchange RLC for computer resources. Through the marketplace, individuals/developers running dApps can shop for the resources tailored towards their application’s needs. iExec comes with a Matchmaking smart contract that ensures that no provider is biting off more than it can chew when committing its processing power to a contract. Moreover, a reputation smart contract manages a provider’s reliability.

Think of this like a Yelp review for computing resources.

This reputation system allows users to choose the level of reliability they want, paying less for a less reliable host if they so desire.

Thus, the marketplace is free-market driven, and the more providers and users on it, the more competition will dictate pricing.

dApp Store: Finally, a decentralized equivalent to application stores. As its name suggests, the dApp store allows you to browse and purchase dApps that are built on or use iExec. And the cool thing is, the dApp store is live and already features applications you can purchase today. Additionally, application providers can also submit their dApps for listing on the platform.

Data Marketplace: This marketplace is to data what the dApp store is to applications. With it, data providers can sell their excess data to dApp providers or any other party willing to purchase it. Ranging from athlete stats to government consensus data, the sky’s the limit to what you could market on this platform. If someone is willing to buy it, you can use iExec to sell it. Unlike the dApp store (up and running) and Marketplace (set to release this year), the Data Marketplace is still in the conceptual stages of its development, so don’t expect it for some time yet.

iExec’s core team consists of six PhDs, four of which have been working in cloud computing since the early 2000s.

These four, Gilles Fedak, Haiwu He, Oleg Lodygensky, and Mircea Moca, have experience working at INRIA and CNRS developing programs for Desktop Grid computing.

iExec is the product of their collective experience, and after Gilles Fedak discovered Ethereum in 2016, the team found the solution to a problem they had been debating since 2012: how to create a distributed cloud based on Desktop Grid computing.

Thus, iExec was born, and the team has been making steady progress towards realizing their goal since.

They maintain an active GitHub, updating it consistently with the open-sourced fruits of their labor, including iExec’s software development kit in November of 2017.