Litepaper

Core Technology

Overview

DataHaven is a decentralized storage solution built on a Proof-of-Stake, layer 1 blockchain secured by Eigenlayer’s re-staking protocol. It offers an EVM-compatible environment with fast finality and integrated data storage. The network consists of “storage providers” managing off-chain data storage and an EVM blockchain coordinating storage requests, tracking ownership, and verifying data. The blockchain secures file storage by managing and verifying proofs from storage providers.

Substrate Framework

DataHaven is built on Substrate, a modular framework in Rust with a rich library of reusable components (pallets). Substrate’s extensibility and active development community enable easy customization. By leveraging Substrate, DataHaven gains access to battle-tested pallets used in networks like Moonbeam and Polkadot, offering features like cross-chain interactions, trustless bridging, governance, and Proof-of-Stake with fast finality. This flexibility, efficiency, and interoperability make Substrate ideal for Web3 innovation.

DataHaven provides an unshakable foundation for the next wave of digital transformation.

Integration with Ethereum

DataHaven is fully EVM compatible, supporting popular wallets and tools and providing a familiar environment for EVM developers. Unlike other Web3 storage solutions that operate separately from computation blockchains, causing inefficiencies, DataHaven enables seamless interactions between smart contracts and stored data.

With DataHaven, dApps can interact with the storage layer, managing large datasets, file uploads, access permissions, and storage proofs for data integrity verification. For example, an NFT collection could store digital assets and verify authenticity on-chain. DataHaven also supports secure, collaborative workflows for projects requiring shared access to critical documents, such as Real-World Asset (RWA) initiatives, ensuring decentralized accessibility and control.

Secured by Eigenlayer’s re-staking protocol, DataHaven relies on Ethereum for economic security, unlike standalone storage blockchains that have weaker security. This ensures multi-chain applications are backed by Ethereum’s stake and offers robust protection for assets and data.

Additional Features

System Token

DataHaven’s economic model is centered around a system token that will be considered native to the network. This token is integral to the network’s operation and value accrual and will serve several key functions, as discussed below.

Staking to Secure DataHaven

Although the re-staking of Ethereum will form the bedrock of DataHaven’s crypto-economic security, the EigenLayer protocol allows for other assets to be staked/re-staked to help secure an AVS. Holders of the system token will be able to delegate stake to operators in order to participate in securing DataHaven and earn rewards. (It should be noted that Moonbeam’s native token GLMR and/or GLMR LSTs will also be able to be staked/re-staked in a similar manner.) 

Payment for Execution

The system token will be the gas token for the network used to pay for computational resources and transaction fees. As with a typical EVM environment, the cost of gas will be denominated in the system token. All transactions and smart contract executions will require a fee, which will be paid in the system token. A dynamic fee mechanism will be used to prevent spam and ensure efficient use of network resources. Priority fees will be included in rewards to operators (validators) while the base fee will be split into a portion directed to treasury and a portion to be burned, configurable via governance.

Storage Fees and Incentives

Storage fees may be paid using the system token. Conversely, payments to storage network operators providing storage services may be denominated in the system token. However, a goal of the project is to have predictable storage costs and payments to operators, in dollar terms, per GB per unit of time. In order for storage providers to participate in the network and earn fees for storing data, they will be required to hold collateral denominated in the system token, which may be slashed if they lose user data, ensuring a commitment to data preservation.

Governance

The system token is central to the network’s governance, empowering stakeholders to shape decisions. Token holders can vote on proposals and referendums, with voting power based on the amount and lock period of tokens. Token holders govern data storage fees, council composition, and fund allocation through on-chain voting. Additionally, they can delegate voting power for decentralized decision-making.

DataHaven’s foundational architecture as a Layer 1 blockchain, built using the Substrate framework, enables deep-level customizations at the core protocol level that go beyond the capabilities of smart contracts. These inherent optimizations are crucial for effectively serving DataHaven’s intended use cases. The following sections detail the additions made to the runtime and client to add full Ethereum compatibility and decentralized storage capabilities, and for the chain to operate as an EigenLayer AVS and therefore benefit from Ethereum’s shared security.

DataHaven Runtime

Aside from managing accounts and balances, the DataHaven runtime will offer a set of powerful capabilities that are commonly included in Substrate-based chains, including support for proxy accounts (proxy pallet), account identities (identity pallet), transaction batching (utility pallet), multi-signature operations (multisig pallet), and scheduled and delayed operations (scheduler pallet).

Consensus and Finality

For consensus, DataHaven will use a typical hybrid model composed of a block production mechanism and a finality gadget for probabilistic and provable finality. The target block time will be six seconds. DataHaven will use the BABE slot-based block production mechanism based on a known set of validators with a randomized slot assignment. The block author will be selected pseudo-randomly out of an active set of validators provided to the block authoring mechanism by the EigenLayer AVS integration (based on registered AVS operators on EigenLayer). DataHaven will use the GRANDPA gadget for block finality.

Native Bridge to Ethereum

DataHaven’s chain runtime will feature a trust-minimized native bridge to Ethereum—an extremely rare and highly secure approach in the blockchain ecosystem. Unlike most bridges, which rely on significant trust assumptions, DataHaven’s bridge is built directly into the protocol, eliminating the need for additional external trust layers when transferring assets or data between Ethereum and DataHaven. This design is made possible by leveraging a custom Layer 1 with verifiable proofs via BEEFY, ensuring seamless and secure bridging, much like the native bridge of a rollup.  

To achieve this, DataHaven will integrate BEEFY alongside GRANDPA finality, allowing its Ethereum-based AVS to track finalized headers efficiently. It will also support EigenLayer shared security, token transfers, and cross-chain smart contract operations. Built on Snowbridge, a decentralized bridge between Polkadot and Ethereum, the DataHaven Bridge will reuse critical components (e.g., `snowbridge-pallet-ethereum-client`) while customizing others (e.g., system and queue pallets) to fit its needs.  

Additionally, DataHaven will enable generic message passing for cross-chain interoperability, utilizing Polkadot SDK components (e.g., `pallet-bridge-messages`) and developing new pallets to support arbitrary message formats beyond XCM. The team will fork Snowbridge’s pallets for enhanced functionality tailored to DataHaven’s architecture.

AVS Support (EigenLayer)

The DataHaven chain runtime will integrate capabilities to make it operate under the shared security model provided by EigenLayer. More concretely, the active set of validators will be provided by the DataHaven AVS, and the validator rewards will be sent to the DataHaven AVS. The active list of DataHaven AVS operators will be cached in a new, special purpose Substrate pallet. The list of validators will be updated through messages transiting from Ethereum to DataHaven via the native bridge. This pallet will also track and report validator rewards based on authored blocks to the DataHaven AVS on Ethereum—again, with messages transiting over the native bridge.

Ethereum Compatibility

DataHaven will provide Ethereum compatibility by integrating core features from Moonbeam, including:

Bridged & Native Assets

DataHaven will support foreign (bridged) assets (i.e. wrapped / derived versions of native ETH or ERC20 tokens on Ethereum) transferred to the DataHaven chain via the native bridge. These will seamlessly interoperate with smart contracts deployed on DataHaven. DataHaven may also support native assets exposed to the EVM layer as ERC20, similarly to assets and foreign assets on Moonbeam.

DataHaven will come built-in with decentralized storage capabilities by integrating features of the StorageHub project—a storage-optimized collection of Substrate pallets focusing on efficient and decentralized data storage. This addresses the need for scalable, secure, and decentralized storage enabling applications to seamlessly access, utilize, and manage storage even in cross-chain deployments.

DataHaven ensures efficient and reliable storage using Merkle cryptographic structures, including Merkle Patricia Forests to manage on-chain storage with cryptographic summaries instead of per-file records. It also employs Merklized Files for Storage Proofs, challenging providers to prove they are storing files by verifying random chunks.

Storage Runtime Pallets

Several StorageHub Pallets (modules) will form part of the DataHaven runtime in order to provide the coordination and management of storage operations. The File System Pallet allocates files to storage providers using Merkle Patricia Forests, managing storage requests and deletions with cryptographic methods to minimize on-chain storage. The Storage Providers Pallet handles Main Storage Providers (MSPs) and Backup Storage Providers (BSPs), tracking MSP data retrieval and BSP redundancy, with token collateral and capacity-based price adjustments. The Storage Proofs Pallet generates and verifies storage proof challenges, enabling storage providers to charge for services while distributing challenges based on stored data.

Main Storage Providers (MSPs)

DataHaven’s storage enables flexible interactions between users or applications and MSPs. MSPs offer data retrieval services, with multiple customizable implementations at different costs. DataHaven allows AI agents and developers to discover MSPs based on services and value, and ensures transparency by recording agreements. MSPs earn revenue from storage services, with users paying for file storage, thereby incentivizing reliable solutions. To become a provider, MSPs must hold collateral, which can be slashed if data is lost. MSPs manage file “buckets,” with each linked to the provider and secured by a Merkle Patricia Forest stored on-chain.

Backup Storage Providers (BSPs)

BSPs ensure data reliability and redundancy in a decentralized network, backing up data to keep it available even if an MSP fails. BSPs must hold collateral that can be slashed if data is lost, and they have lower operational costs since they only perform occasional peer-to-peer retrieval. Each file stored by a BSP is split into chunks, “merkelized,” and linked to a file key, with the root stored on-chain as proof of storage. BSPs are periodically challenged to submit proof of storage, with challenge frequency based on storage size. A Fair Distribution mechanism prevents front-running, allowing all BSPs the chance to volunteer for new storage requests.

DataHaven Client

EigenLayer and the DataHaven AVS

EigenLayer

EigenLayer is a protocol built on Ethereum that introduces restaking, a new primitive for Web3 builders that provides a “marketplace for trust,” bringing together restakers, operators, and AVSs. It allows users to stake assets such as Native ETH, Liquid Staking Tokens (LSTs), the EIGEN token, or any ERC20 token into EigenLayer smart contracts, thereby extending Ethereum’s cryptoeconomic security to additional applications on the network. For more background information on the EigenLayer protocol, consult the official documentation.

DataHaven AVS

DataHaven will function as an EigenLayer AVS, benefiting from Ethereum shared security and providing seamless interoperability between contracts and assets on DataHaven and the Ethereum network. Generally speaking, an AVS is composed of on-chain contracts (on Ethereum) for validation and an off-chain network of operators. Operators execute the service on behalf of the AVS and then post evidence of their execution on-chain to the AVS contracts. If the operators perform the tasks properly, the AVS can distribute rewards; if operators perform poorly or with malicious intent, their delegate stake can be slashed by the AVS, and the operator can be removed from the operator set.

In the case of DataHaven, this implies the following: DataHaven is registered on EigenLayer as an AVS, and operators can opt-in to provide validation services (that is, act as validators by running the DataHaven node binary) for the DataHaven network.

On the Ethereum side, the DataHaven project will deploy several contracts to operate as an AVS:

Operators & Rewards

The DataHaven AVS contract will maintain a list of selected operators and emit events for updates. This list will be relayed via the DataHaven Bridge to the DataHaven chain to update the validator set. In return, DataHaven will send the current reward shares of active validators through the bridge to the AVS contract and then to the EigenLayer RewardCoordinator to issue staking and delegating rewards.

DataHaven Bridge

DataHaven will integrate Snowbridge as a DataHaven-Ethereum bridge, reusing existing contracts and infrastructure, modified to fit the needs of the project. The DataHaven Bridge includes an on-chain Beefy light client (Solidity) contract, a Gateway contract for relaying and routing messages, and other supporting contracts (types, primitives, proxy accounts, etc.). These will be reviewed and modified, if needed, to support the DataHaven AVS implementation.

Bridge Message execution

The DataHaven-ETH bridge will need the following types of messages:

While the DataHaven Bridge is relying on the Polkadot XCM message format for all messages, it will be extended to support additional or arbitrary message formats.

DataHaven Bridge Relayers

As described above, DataHaven will have its own decentralized, trustless bridge solution to Ethereum. The relayers are off-chain, untrusted services watching two Blockchain networks, and relaying messages across them. The DataHaven project will integrate modified versions of the existing Snowbridge relayers, namely:

Future Outlook

DataHaven is AI-first Web3 infrastructure, purpose-built to power the next generation of decentralized AI applications. While it supports a broad range of industries—including real-world assets, web hosting, NFTs, and verifiable backup solutions—its AI use cases stand at the forefront. Below are a few key examples.

For a complete list of use cases, visit this page.