What is Kinetic?
Kinetic is an experimental decentralized naming protocol written in Rust.
It explores using Verifiable Delay Functions (VDFs) instead of recurring registration fees to make name registration expensive for attackers but inexpensive for ordinary users.
The project is under active development and should currently be considered experimental.
Why does it exist?
While building Antimatter, I realized that even though the core was fully decentralized, the application still depended on standard domains for initial peer-to-peer connections. That made me start thinking whether naming could work differently—without relying on centralized registrars or tying identity to expensive blockchain tokens. Kinetic is the result of exploring that question.
🚀 Quick Start
You can install the compiled Kinetic Daemon and integrate it into your system DNS with a single command. The installer safely integrates with your OS (systemd-resolved on Linux, /etc/resolver on macOS, NRPT on Windows).
macOS & Linux:
curl -sL https://kinetic.saifmukhtar.dev/install.sh | bashWindows (PowerShell as Admin):
Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "https://kinetic.saifmukhtar.dev/install.ps1" -OutFile "install.ps1"; .\install.ps1
🖥️ The Kinetic Web UI
The installation automatically includes the Kinetic UI, an embedded React interface that lets you monitor the network, manage your domains, and track P2P activity. Once the daemon is running, simply navigate to:
Watch the 50-node Kinetic Network live simulation in action
🏗️ Architecture
Because the browser speaks standard DNS and the kinetic-daemon speaks standard DNS, the browser has no idea that it just resolved a domain via a decentralized Kademlia swarm. The integration is seamless.
graph LR
subgraph User OS
App[Browser / Application]
Daemon((Kinetic Daemon<br/>127.0.0.2:53))
App -->|DNS Query| Daemon
end
subgraph Split-DNS Router
Daemon -->|Ends in .kin| Kin{Intercept}
Daemon -->|Other TLDs| Pass{Pass-Through}
end
subgraph External Networks
Kin -->|VDF/DHT Math| DHT[(Kademlia DHT)]
Pass -->|Standard UDP/TCP| Upstream[Upstream Resolver<br/>1.1.1.1 / 8.8.8.8]
Upstream --> ICANN((ICANN Root Zone))
end
style Daemon fill:#005A9C,stroke:#000,stroke-width:2px,color:#fff
style Kin fill:#9400D3,stroke:#000,stroke-width:2px,color:#fff
style Pass fill:#228B22,stroke:#000,stroke-width:2px,color:#fff
Internal Crate Architecture
The Kinetic protocol is composed of specialized Rust crates:
kinetic-node: A headless infrastructure node optimized for cloud environments.kinetic-keygen: A deterministic offline key generator for Kinetic governance.kinetic-kid: Handles cryptographic verification of service manifests and Identity Document (KID) operations.kinetic-storage: A wrapper around thesledembedded database, handling local state and auto-recovery.kinetic-client: The cross-platform mobile application built in Flutter. (Hosted in saifmukhtar/kinetic-client).
✨ Features
- Zero Blockchains, Zero Fees: No gas, no tokens, no renewal fees.
-
VDF Proof-of-Time: Secures names against front-running and theft using Chia's repeated squarings ($x^{2^T}$) anchored to the global
drandbeacon. - Kademlia DHT: A 64KB-limited Kademlia DHT that natively rejects poisoned records and resolves conflicts via XOR tie-breaking.
-
Split-DNS: Seamlessly intercepts
.kindomains at the OS loopback level without breaking standard internet traffic. - Mobile Delegation: Smartphones securely hold your keys while delegating the heavy math to your Desktop via Nostr (NIP-04).
⚙️ Claiming Your Name (The Two-Phase Workflow)
Kinetic secures names against front-running using a Two-Phase Commit/Reveal Protocol.
1. The Commit Phase
To claim a .kin domain, use the register command. This fetches randomness from the global drand beacon, broadcasts a secure Hash Commitment to the DHT, and begins the sequential VDF calculation (Proof-of-Time) on your local CPU.
kinetic-cli register myname.kin
Depending on the name's length, this will max out a CPU core for seconds, minutes, or hours.
2. Configure Your Zone
Once the math finishes, Kinetic generates a template file at ~/.config/kinetic/zones/myname.kin.reveal.json. Open this file and configure your target:
{
"name": "myname.kin.",
"target_kid": "did:kin:kid1abc9f7...",
"vdf_proof": "..."
}3. The Reveal Phase
Push your finished proof and DNS records to the global network:
kinetic-cli publish myname.kin
Your name is live globally. Any device running Kinetic can visit http://myname.kin.
📖 Official Documentation
Everything you need to know about Kinetic, the VDF math, and how to build on the network is available at the official docs: https://kinetic.saifmukhtar.dev
- Kinetic Protocol Specification v2: State machines, payload schemas, and empirical algorithms.
- The Kinetic Architecture (Network Layer): The math behind the stateless routing protocol.
- Kinetic Adversarial Analysis: Audit of the cryptographic resilience.
🌐 The Kinetic Simulation (50-Node Sandbox)
We have built a 50-container local simulation environment to demonstrate and red-team the protocol under real-world networking conditions.
Located in the kinetic-sim/ directory, this sandbox orchestrates:
- 10 DHT Nodes
- 6 CDN Hosts
- 34 AI-Driven User Daemons
👉 Read the Full Simulation Guide Here
🙏 Acknowledgments & Core Technologies
Kinetic relies on the foundational research and engineering of the following open-source projects:
- rust-libp2p: The core of our P2P network, utilizing their Kademlia routing implementation.
- The Chia Network (VDFs): C++ implementation of Verifiable Delay Functions (Class Groups of Unknown Order).
- drand: The distributed randomness beacon.
- Sled: Embedded key-value store.
- Nostr (NIP-04): Nostr encrypted direct messages for Mobile VDF Delegation.
Created and maintained by Saif Mukhtar: https://saifmukhtar.dev
📄 License
This project operates under a dual-license structure:
- Codebase: Licensed under the Apache License 2.0.
- Whitepaper & Documentation: Licensed under CC BY 4.0.