Highlights:

  • Ankr will contribute its expertise in blockchain infrastructure, while Microsoft will provide the service via the Azure Marketplace with simple-to-purchase solutions.
  • Builders will be able to deploy fully managed enterprise-grade blockchain nodes with adjustable memory and bandwidth needs in any global location suited to their requirements by combining Ankr’s infrastructure with the Microsoft Azure cloud.

Ankr Inc., a Web3 infrastructure firm, recently announced a partnership with Microsoft Corp. to provide enterprise-level blockchain node hosting services for decentralized app developers and builders via the Microsoft Azure cloud solution.

Ankr will contribute its expertise in blockchain infrastructure, while Microsoft will provide the service via the Azure Marketplace with simple-to-purchase solutions. Customers will be able to purchase blockchain node hosting infrastructure in the same way that they would any other cloud service.

Web3, also known as the decentralized web, enables participants to create financial ecosystems that do not rely on intermediaries or centralized finance like banks, as well as non-traditional ecosystems like decentralized gaming and retail. Web3’s network infrastructure is based on the blockchain, which depends on nodes.

Blockchain nodes are a critical component of Web3 networks. They keep copies of the distributed blockchain ledger, serve as communication hubs, and validate the transactions added to the network. A node’s primary responsibility is to validate the legitimacy of each new “block” of transactions added to the blockchain.

Running a node allows Web3 developers low-latency access to blockchains to read and write transactions, and monitor application performance as closely as possible. Decentralized applications, or dapps, are more dependable on operations teams. As a result, they are also simpler to access, update, and troubleshoot when something goes wrong.

Ankr co-founder and Chief Executive Chandler Song, said, “This was a critical step in bringing blockchain infrastructure to a growing sector of the digital economy. The partnership, while an incredible milestone for Ankr, is also a key indicator of how far the decentralized web has come in integrating with the crucial players in every layer of web systems.”

Builders will be able to deploy fully managed enterprise-grade blockchain nodes with adjustable memory and bandwidth needs in any global location suited to their requirements by combining Ankr’s infrastructure with the Microsoft Azure cloud. This will enable clients to quickly track the performance of nodes across many various blockchains with comprehensive telemetry and optimization for speed and reliability

Ankr supports over 38 blockchains, including Celo, Polkadot, Fantom, Near, Ethereum, and BNB Smart Chain.

Rashmi Misra, general manager of AI and new technologies at Microsoft, “Many developers and organizations are exploring how Web3 can help solve real-world business challenges, and our partnership with Ankr will enable them to access blockchain data in a reliable, scalable, and secure way.”

Infura, Alchemy, and Blockdaemon are well-known businesses that offer comparable services, and they all offer enterprise-grade node hosting infrastructure on their clouds. Google Cloud also offers Node Engine but only supports Ethereum blockchain nodes. In September, the cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase released Node as a component of Coinbase Cloud, which offers developers enterprise-level managed node hosting.

With this collaboration, Ankr and Microsoft intend to give developers more options for hosting enterprise nodes to create blockchain-based applications without stressing the underlying infrastructure.

Song commented on the partnership, “The end result will be an era of extremely prolific building for blockchain-based applications from new Web3 projects as well as large enterprises entering the space.”