Today marks the mainnet launch of Canto Identity Protocol (CIP), a new protocol system designed to bring a broader, more meaningful interpretation to onchain self-expression. Read on to learn more about CIP, the future of onchain identity, and the new subprotocols representing identity traits.

Introducing Canto Identity Protocol

Canto Identity Protocol believes users should be able to self-custody and customize the traits that form their onchain identity to better reflect their true selves.

Current protocols for onchain identity are fragmented and often represent one trait, such as a name or PFP. CIP allows for the decentralized creation, customization, and connection of multiple traits to a single onchain identity or Canto Identity NFT (CID), resulting in a more expressive representation of onchain identity.

Customizable Onchain Identity

CIP empowers users to self-custody their self-expression by offering a customizable onchain representation of what matters most to them – whether that means a name, pfp, poaps, dao memberships, accredited investor status, or any identity signal. At any time, users are able to attach, remove, or change the traits attached to their identity. In the same way that people grow and evolve, CIDs can too.

Decentralizing Onchain Identity With OARS

CIP is powered by an Open Aggregating Registration System (OARS), a new primitive that aggregates & synchronizes protocols while enabling anyone to build & register new subprotocols reflecting the nuances of identity. In short, OARS allows protocols to 'row' the same way. By ‘rowing’ together, the subprotocols seamlessly join multiple traits in one unified onchain identity. Once a subprotocol is registered, users can add it to their identity by minting an NFT of that subprotocol and attaching it to their CID.

For more information on CIP subprotocols and how to register, check out the CIP documentation.

Canto Identity Launch Subprotocols

Canto Identity subprotocols are smart contracts that use NFTs to represent various identity traits. To create the most authentic reflection of onchain identity, a user would attach multiple subprotocol NFTs to their CID, to paint a more vivid picture of who they are. It is important to note that a wallet can only have one CID registered to its address at any given time.

CIP launches with three subprotocol identity trait NFTs for users to attach to their CID:

Display Names with Canto Namespace

Launched as the first subprotocol in CIP, Canto Namespace is a permissionless protocol allowing users to mint onchain display names. Unlike other naming protocols, which offer names in a single style, Canto Namespace Protocol (CNP) empowers users with self-expression by creating onchain names with stylized letters, numbers, and emojis.

Currently, users are able to fuse names that are between 8 and 13 characters in length, with shorter characters becoming available at a later date. To build a name, a user would need to mint several character trays or purchase them in a secondary marketplace and select the characters they want to fuse together to create their name.

Users who have fused a Canto Namespace NFT(s) can select a name to register to their CID. Read more about the Canto Namespace launch details here.

PFP

The PFP protocol lets users select a Canto ERC721 NFT from their wallet to register to their CID. Users can remove or change the PFP associated with their CID anytime.

Bio

To bring a sense of self onchain, users can write a bio to attach to their CID. CID Bios are 199 characters long and can contain letters, punctuation, and emojis. Users can remove their bio or change it at any time by minting and attaching a new bio NFT.

Latest Updates

New integrations and subprotocols are on the way to bring richer expression to your CID. Soon, traits such as name and pfp will travel with you while accessing apps across the Canto ecosystem.

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