
Saito is a layer-one blockchain. The network is noteworthy for being [more secure than Bitcoin](/faq/how-is-saito-more-secure-than-bitcoin) while making payments not just to miners and stakers but also the nodes in the network that offer data-services to users in the network.




What is Saito?


There are incentive misalignments in proof-of-work and proof-of-stake that Saito fixes. The solution is to create a network where the nodes that move data around the network (and collect money from users) get paid instead of the nodes that spend it, like Saito.

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What problem is Saito trying to solve?


Two market failures affect every non-Saito blockchain: a [tragedy of the commons]() problem that encourages blockchain bloat and a [free-rider problem]() that pushes up the cost of using the network. These problems get worse and worse as networks scale and costs rise. To have a truly-scalable public blockchain, we need to fix these problems.


Why do we need another blockchain?


Yes, Saito is a layer-one blockchain that doesn't depend on any other blockchain to run.

Saito the token can be wrapped on other chains, like Ethereum and Binance Smart Chain for ease of purchase, then converted to native Saito tokens (read [How do I store Saito?](/faq/how-do-i-store-saito)).

Also, Saito integrates with Polkadot and its parachains, and as a Web3 Foundation grant receipient, has a project to build a decentralized game engine for Web3. This framework sits on top of the Saito blockchain and provides an easy way for developers from other chains to integrate Saito into their Web3 dapp.



Is Saito its own blockchain?


What was interesting about Satoshi's invention of Bitcoin was that it was open and self-sufficient. This open and self-funding network eliminated trusted third parties, enabling a competitive system that anybody could participate in.

Openness is a property usually confused with decentralization. Decentralization is simply a description of network topology. By contrast, a network is open when anyone can join, and no one can determine who can and cannot participate. A network being decentralized does not necessarily mean it is open. Without openness, the topology of the network is meaningless, and the real innovation of Satoshi's solution is lost.


Why is openness more important than decentralization?


Saito specializes in being a large, scalable, decentralized layer-one blockchain. Most chains become more centralized as they get bigger due to [The Scaleability Trilemma](/faq/how-does-saito-solve-the-scaleability-trilemma), but Saito solves it:

> Saito shows that a blockchain can get its security from the division of funds across the routing network. This means scaleability can actually increase the cost of attack and decentralization.

Because Saito can scale, it can [handle large volumes of data](/faq/how-does-saito-handle-terabytes-of-data-on-its-blockchain), enabling entirely new kinds of applications that can live on-chain for significantly cheaper than most other blockchains.

This enables typical web3 use-cases, and what Saito doesn't currently offer through a layer-one can be handled through deep integration with other blockchains through its integration with [Polkadot](https://polkadot.network/).


What are some of the best use cases of the Saito blockchain?



Saito can be safely stored like any other token. Saito tokens exist on multiple chains (Ethereum, Binance Smart Chain, BSV, Saito Native, etc...)—the important thing is to always use the network that your token is on, don't try to convert between them unless there's an explicit bridge. Always use best practices for that network (backup the keys to your wallet). Always send to an address you control (double check).

Most available Saito is wrapped on the Ethereum network in the form of an ERC-20 token. For example, if you purchased from [Uniswap](https://org.saito.tech/saito-ido-guide/), you purchased Saito as a token on the Ethereum network, and get all the benefits of a normal ERC-20 token. If you purchase on an exchange like [Gate](https://www.gate.io/trade/SAITO_USDT), they will tell you what kind of network you're on.

Some Saito is being wrapped on other chains like Binance Smart Chain in the form of BEP-20 tokens, and new chains are wrapping Saito all the time. Each of those will have a different but similar process.

When Saito enables token persistence, you can start converting tokens to the native Saito token through bridges that will be provided. What will be important then, is to backup your Saito wallet to ensure you'll continue to have access to your native Saito tokens—they'll no longer exist in the original form—they'll only exist on Saito from that point forward.

Use general crypto best practices (hardware wallets and cold storage) and be sure to ask questions if you need help!


How do I store Saito?


The reason Bitcoin had the 3 forks (BTC, BCH, BSV) is because the stakeholders of the system (users, businesses and miners) were not properly incentivized.
So while Bitcoin did solve a complex collective action problem, it didn’t balance the incentives properly, and the system is ripping itself apart.
Solving this isn’t easy; every blockchain has this problem.



What's wrong with Bitcoin?


> “The job of miners is to secure the network via hashpower, not to provide network infrastructure.” — Vitalik Buterin.

[Infura](https://infura.io/) spends a lot of money providing access to the Ethereum network. Most blockchain developers consider this a good thing. As Vitalik Buterin has remarked, miners' job is to mine, so having private companies step in to run infrastructure is a boon. 

This falls into the trap of treating outside markets as “consequence-free” ways to fund core infrastructure.

There are three major risks in this approach: monopolization, lost openness and cartelization—all three outcomes are negative and lead to failed decentralization.



What's wrong with Ethereum?


Saito doesn't have an EVM or OP_CODES. Apps are like Bitcoin OP_RETURN. Put data in a tx and send it to an address. Everyone can see the TX, so you can all use it as input for an application if you want. This is an incredibly powerful model for dapps, but not necessarily smart contracts.

Saito has excellent interoperability with other blockchains through [Polkadot](https://polkadot.network/), can leverage the best of other chains, and even create native Saito layer-2 implementations. Also, OP_CODES and/or EVM can be added in the future, enabling more functionality in layer-1.


Does Saito have an EVM equivalent?


Markets need to control the distribution of benefits to induce people to pay for them. If you're producing something that everyone can enjoy, you'll have difficulty convincing someone to pay you to cover the cost.

The traditional solution is to privatize things, incentivizing someone to manage it. But the public network in any blockchain is a public good.

The problem is you need a network layer that shares data, that provides shared, open access to data flows, for the consensus mechanism that feeds off it to remain secure.

In the long-term, the only solution is to switch to consensus mechanisms that actually [pay for fee-collection](https://saitoofficial.medium.com/the-infura-problem-fe68866484ec), like [routing work](https://org.saito.tech/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Saito-2021-Routing-Work.pdf).



How does Saito solve the free-rider problem?


The tragedy of the commons is a collective action problem that lets private individuals deplete group resources. In blockchains, it happens when people can pay once and put something on-chain forever—creating a long-term cost for other node runners.

Saito has a circular blockchain where old transactions must compete for new space. This makes it so that everyone pays market rates and nobody can pass costs onto others in the future.



How does Saito solve the tragedy of the commons?



Every network faces the same rough cost structure on a per-byte basis because those limitations come from physics. If you want to push the boundaries, you have to increase your spending on network hardware (which Saito Consensus pays for).

Also, by implementing a pruning mechanism as a dynamic form of “rent,” where the free market decides how much space on chain costs instead of ETH developers, you have an incentive to grow the chain until you can’t grow anymore, or shrink it if costs are higher than income.

Importantly, Saito solves the "[scaleability trilemma](/faq/how-does-saito-solve-the-scaleability-trilemma)" other blockchains have. There is still a tradeoff between decentralization and scalability, but not by trading security.

How does Saito handle terabytes of data on its blockchain?


Saito [routing work](https://org.saito.tech/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Saito-2021-Routing-Work.pdf) is one of the big breakthroughs that switches the blockchain from something that only pays for mining and staking to one that pays for value creation.

<img src="/saito-btc-eth-comparison.png" />



Saito pays for fee collection and sharing, which incentivizes all above (and more), necessary for a self-sustaining layer-one blockchain.

Routing work is core to solving the [free-rider problem](/faq/how-does-saito-solve-the-free-rider-problem) that every proof-of-work and proof-of-stake blockchain has.

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How does routing work solve consensus?


As proposed by Vitalik Buterin, the scalability trilemma asserts that it is impossible to increase decentralization, scale or security in a blockchain without decreasing at least one of the other two.![scaleability-trilemma](/scaleability-trilemma.png)

Saito shows that a blockchain can get its security from the division of funds across the routing network. This means scaleability can actually increase the cost of attack and decentralization.

There is still a scale-vs-decentralization dilemma, but that has nothing to do with security and thus nothing particularly interesting or meaningful to say about it.

How does Saito solve The Scaleability Trilemma?


Saito ensures that producing blocks is always expensive. Honest nodes pay those costs with the fees they collect from users. Attackers must pay out-of-pocket and are guaranteed to lose a quantifiable amount of money with each block they produce. There is no point at which this cost-of-attack falls below zero.

Unless attackers match the amount of work done by the overall network, they either cannot produce blocks as quickly as honest nodes, or are able to produce blocks but not collect payments. Attackers must either go bankrupt or permit others to add work to their chain.


How does Saito solve the 51% attack?


Proof-of-work and proof-of-stake collect $1 from users and get a $0.50 cost of attack. Saito collects $1 from users and gets a $1 cost-of-attack.



How is Saito more secure than Bitcoin?


No. Attackers who have a mere 50% of network resources lose about half their money for each block—the cost-of-attack scales with the volume of network fees collected by others in the network.

In fact, Saito is [ASIC-resistant](https://medium.com/4svio/saito-303a7884ef18).


Surely there is a 51% attack in there somewhere?


Quantum computers can't game Saito's work function because owning a quantum machine doesn’t make it easier to convince someone to give you a transaction containing fees. This is the same reason Saito is ASIC-resistant.

Quantum computing doesn't obsolete traditional crypto anyway though — it may force an increase in key length though, which is one of the reasons it’s essential to pay for scale.


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