Tell me who you are:
Hi, I’m Nelly, CMO of iExec. If I had to describe myself, I’d say I’m all about Web3, data privacy, and tech for good.
My journey began in 2016 when I discovered blockchain—it was such a transformative experience. I was amazed by this new way of creating digital trust and felt it was too important to keep to myself. In 2017, I quit my job, moved to Lyon in France, and used all my savings to launch the first French non-profit organization dedicated to helping the general public discover blockchain technology and its use cases beyond cryptocurrencies, like tech for good. Since then, it’s been an incredible journey in this space.
Technology is not just what I do for a living; it is part of who I am. Today, besides my job, I enjoy working with public and private institutions to create learning communities and promote the understanding and practical use of technology. I serve as a jury member and mentor for the World Summit Awards, recognizing startups in 182 countries that use digital solutions to support the UN Sustainable Development Goals. I also collaborate with ENISA, the European Union Agency for Cybersecurity, helping to make their cybersecurity awareness campaigns for SMEs reach their audiences. Most recently, I joined the team launching the Women in Web3 Privacy initiative to help bring privacy to where it’s most needed and make it easier for people to understand and access.
Tell me about iEXEC:
iExec was founded in 2016 by a team of French researchers with a vision to transform cloud computing by making it decentralized, secure, and widely accessible. Using blockchain technology, iExec created a marketplace for cloud computing resources that overcomes the limitations of traditional centralized cloud systems. addressing the limitations of traditional centralized cloud systems and enabling users to securely share and access computing power, data, and applications without relying on a central authority.
As demand for secure, decentralized infrastructure grows—especially for AI and data-driven applications—iExec is leading the way with DePIN models incorporating Confidential Computing to protect data privacy, offering a secure and resilient foundation.
Being in the space since the early days has allowed us to witness and contribute to its evolution. Thanks to our extraordinary team and research DNA, we stay ahead of trends and continue to meet the needs of our community and the industry.
Today, iExec is a robust platform for building, owning, and monetizing digital assets. We have worked tirelessly to simplify the complexities of blockchain and confidential computing, creating new products for builders and end users that empower them to regain ownership of their digital assets, monetize them, and prioritize privacy.
This approach has made iExec more accessible to a broader audience while supporting the development of an ecosystem centered around the RLC token. By improving accessibility and creating a true network effect, our ecosystem delivers value to everyone, from token holders to builders to end users.
What are the USPs for iEXEC?
In the context of DeCC (Decentralized Confidential Computing), we have listened to builders’ most common pain points, and our mission is to facilitate access to confidential computing. iExec developer tools streamline development with this tech with pre-packaged codebases that simplify integrating confidential computing in DApps.
The iExec DataProtector tool offers a data protection solution, with confidential computing handling data encryption and secure processing, while smart contracts manage ownership and governance to ensure confidentiality and traceability. It also supports advanced features like secure data sharing and ownership transfer, enabling users to securely collaborate, manage, and monetize their data. Thanks to their versatility, our dev tools like iExec DataProtector have been integrated into projects across various verticals, including SoFi, DeFi, DePin, AI, RWA, and Payments.
Tell me about the iEXEC Privacy Pass:
Another example of making DeCC accessible is the iExec Privacy Pass. It lets users earn RLC tokens for receiving marketing emails, while keeping their email addresses private, never disclosed to marketers. Thanks to Confidential Computing, the Privacy Pass securely encrypts and processes the emails, so the sender never actually sees the addresses. It’s a perfect example of how we incentivize privacy, by empowering users to keep their data safe while participating in reward-based programs.
For me, Privacy Pass was a milestone— I could finally explain to my mom and friends what my company does in a way that relates to a problem they’re familiar with—receiving annoying emails from people they don’t know and having their emails monetized by others! This messaging was incredibly effective in onboarding Web2 audiences into the benefits of Web3, we used it during an educational campaign with Revolut this year and it was a great success, with 1.3 million people completing the class.
The best part is that emails are just the beginning. This same technology can be applied to other digital assets like IDs, documents, videos, etc. unlocking a whole new way for users to interact with applications. It ensures privacy while allowing them to benefit from the value their digital assets can generate.
When did you first meet the DeCC Alliance?
We met the alliance earlier this year, the projects involved were: Acurast, Aleo, Aleph Zero, Automata, Aztec, COTI, Fairblock, Fhenix, Inco, Integritee, Intmax, Marlin, Mind Network, Novapolis, Oasis, Partisia Blockchain Foundation, Phala, Secret Network, Sunscreen, Swisstronik, TEN, Ternoa and Zama.
Why do you say confidential computing is important?
When protecting data, common security measures would focus on two states: data at rest (when it is stored) and data in transit (when it moves across networks). However, there’s a important third state that is often overlooked—data in use. This is when data is actively being processed by a program or application. Before Confidential Computing, this third state remained a significant vulnerability in the data lifecycle.
Why? Because to use the data a program or an application needs to see it, this means that the data is unencrypted in the memory. Because the data is exposed, malicious actors can exploit this vulnerability.
Confidential Computing comes into play, it isolates sensitive data during processing. This is important because it complements the data encryption lifecycle, which includes protecting data at rest, in transit, and in use.
Since 2018, we’ve been at the forefront of combining Confidential Computing with blockchain, partnering with Intel to launch the first-ever Trusted Compute Specification for the Ethereum Enterprise Alliance. This groundbreaking collaboration set the stage for secure data processing in Web3.
Fast forward to 2019, and iExec proudly became the first Web3 company to join the Confidential Computing Consortium, cementing our role as pioneers in decentralized data protection. Through these early innovations, we laid the groundwork for what is now known as Decentralized Confidential Computing—a revolutionary approach to data privacy and security in the Web3 space.
Why the partnership?
It’s a collaborative and multifaceted approach to privacy. Although iExec embodies DeCC in the form of hardware encryption combined with blockchain, the movement isn’t confined to just one technology. It brings together various encryption methods like TEEs, Zero-Knowledge Proofs (ZKP), Multi-Party Computation (MPC), Garbled Circuits (GC), and Fully Homomorphic Encryption (FHE). Combined, these technologies provide a powerful framework for secure data protection and verifiable computations. For iExec, collaborating with the DeCC Alliance aligns with our long-standing mission to enable confidential data processing through TEEs. In other words, Privacy is our cup of TEE.
What are the benefits to both?
Privacy in Web3 is often misunderstood and often related to privacy coins for blockchain transactions, rather than data privacy. This is where promoting a broader understanding of privacy can benefit the ecosystem in general.
Before, blockchain technology has been synonymous with transparency, where data is instantly visible to all. This poses challenges for applications that require sensitive data handling.
Confidential Computing is a powerful tool for securing data during use, but isn’t a cure-all for privacy concerns when used alone. Blockchain is needed to provide the governance layer with set, verifiable, rules for data processing. For example, when paired with Trusted Execution Environments (TEEs), this ensures that data is processed securely and only by code that follows these rules. This way we have a system that’s both secure and verifiable.
Tell me about future roadmaps?
The iExec roadmap centers on empowering developers and the infrastructure needed for DePIN and AI through our dev tools, platform, and protocol for privacy-preserving features.
As mentioned before, our developer tools are highly versatile and allow us to provide the foundation for secure, decentralized applications in verticals such as SoFi, DeFi, RWA, and payments.
Thank you Nelly!
