Blockchain storage startup Filecoin gave its first and second quarter appraisal on Tuesday, August 28, 2018, to keep potential investors updated. The company announced it expects to launch its blockchain storage network Mainnet before mid-2019.
Filecoin has been busy creating its roadmap which is still in its initial stages and shows where the company is headed to beyond the expected mid-2019 launch. The company has put in place several milestones it intends to pass the include releasing a demonstration of their go-Filecoin protocol, the execution of a GitHub repository among others.
Implementing the planned launch of the Mainnet Storage Network will only happen after the completion of a successful testing phase. The team intends to incorporate all interested developers to integrate their contribution. The statement from the company’s blog read in part:
“This will be a major point of involvement for the community at large, and we strongly encourage the participation of developers interested in developing Filecoin or in building applications on it.”
The company didn’t give any specific dates on their timeline but apprised interested users of their current position, their timetable and the milestones they intend to achieve in the near and distant future. Filecoin indicated they plan to test their network during the first quarter of 2019 and promised to give exact dates in due course to prepare for the release of MainNet in the second or third quarter thereafter.
The company elaborates on the reason for giving an optimistic timeline:
“We hate giving dates that may turn out to be too optimistic or slip, but we hate the silence and keeping our community in the dark even more. So, against typical mainstream software & product development wisdom, we are publishing this optimistic roadmap with expected dates of targeted milestones, and we plan to revise it as we need.”
While the company appreciates the importance of giving a straighter forward and transparent timeline that helps with coordination across the blockchain community as milestones get closer, they are open that there are unanticipated circumstances that can alter the best plans and cause things to happen, eventually. The announcement implies that the roadmap isn’t cast in concrete and investors should wait with an open mind.
Filecoin conducted an Initial Coin Offering in 2017 and garnered over $257 million marking one of the most successful sales in the industry so far. The MainNet project has received significant support from leading venture capital firms including Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, and Union Square Ventures.
