Flow is a blockchain that aims to provide a platform for gaming applications and digital assets, allowing its users to create and trade NFTs. It was created by Dapper Labs in 2020 as a result of CryptoKitties, a viral blockchain game, negatively affecting the Ethereum network with its high traffic.
Flow is known for its unique multi-role node architecture that is believed to scale to millions. It consists of four types of nodes: collector nodes, execution nodes, verifier nodes, and consensus nodes. Such architecture allows any honest node to respond to invalid data leading to recovery, avoiding sharding and reduction of decentralization.
The blockchain deploys Specialized Proofs of Confidential Knowledge (SPoCKs) that were developed by the Flow team. SPoCKs are a cryptographic technique that addresses the Verifier's Dilemma. It focuses on verification and execution nodes, confirming that execution nodes do not copy the results of each other and verification nodes complete the verification work. The Flow blockchain also utilizes its own native language, Cadence, which is publicly available to any developers wishing to work with it.
In October 2021, Dapper Labs announced that they have reduced the number of nodes controlled by the company to less than one-third, while the rest, more specifically 68%, is managed by the community, further decentralising the network.