CasperLabs integrates with Chainlink decentralized network

CasperLabs announced its plan to integrate with Chainlink’s decentralized oracle network to securely and reliably access data and resources for all the applications being built on its network. Chainlink is the first oracle provider for all the applications that would be developed on CasperLabs blockchain and smart contracting platform. In turn, CasperLabs will be the first platform to use Chainlink as an integral component of the core platform architecture. 

As a general-purpose platform designed for entrepreneurs and enterprises, CasperLabs requires a state of the art, secure, flexible, and proven means of bringing the real world onto the blockchain. Chainlink is the premier oracle solution in this space, having implementation and incentivization expertise. It also has access to a robust ecosystem of high-quality data providers and oracle node operators. CasperLabs developers will use Chainlink’s unique framework to build decentralized oracle networks for strong data security and reliability guarantees.

By integrating Chainlink, CasperLabs will be able to create a much more user-friendly economic environment, as well as empower builders with a whole new subset of possible applications. “CasperLabs is building a blockchain built for businesses. The Chainlink decentralized oracle network will enable us to represent transaction fees in currency versus tokens, making budgeting simple and efficient for businesses,”said Medha Parlikar, CTO CasperLabs.

CasperLabs delegates key platform maintenance tasks to the operation of a special class of contracts, called system contracts. While some of these may be implemented as integral components of the node software or the contract runtime, CasperLabs will conceptualize them as deployed contracts with certain special behaviors for the purpose of this exposition.

The protocol will integrate the Chainlink network of oracles through a group of such contracts. A workflow contract will be read by oracles to see if any updates have been requested by the platform. These requests will come at regular intervals. The oracle node software will then request the necessary data from exchange or data aggregator APIs, and record it on the CasperLabs blockchain, receiving a fair payment in LINK for their efforts. Subsequently, the CasperLabs blockchain node will reference the data stored in the contracts to set nominal CLX transaction fees to match the fixed fiat prices. 

Blockchain technology is still a novelty for established enterprise companies. Creating a reliable system for data intake from legacy systems will ease the risk of migrating decades-old components to this still maturing technology. Such components may include job candidate tracking systems, financial settlement systems and medical records. While entirely novel uses of the blockchain will emerge organically, easing the process of onboarding and experimentation for enterprise can be expected to yield surprising synergies between legacy business infrastructure and blockchain technology. Chainlink provides oracles with the capability of handling API credentials via external adapters, as well as more advanced trusted execution environment features such as Town Crier.