web3.storage is one of the main reasons we can compete with web2 apps. The architecture of IPFS with web3.storage helps us be competitive without millions of dollars and a huge team.

— Logan Lentz, co-founder of Openlinks.io

About the business

Openlinks.io is a free link in bio app built to align with the needs of users! It’s like Linktree but built for the Open Web. Openlinks makes self-sovereign identity fun. Users get cryptographic ownership of a customizable landing page with photo, bio, and links to the user’s online presence across the web.

Problem to solve

Today, users are required to rely on centralized entities to maintain their presence online. Users are temporary guests instead of permanent owners. People’s livelihoods are affected when services go down and become too expensive.

Alex and Logan needed a way to verifiably store user-customized microsites and serve them with global high performance delivery infrastructure. But as a small team they must operate with minimal operational overhead, so they needed a managed service. The end product also needed to be fast and easy for users to interactively create and publish links pages.

They knew they wanted to take advantage of verifiable data in the IPFS ecosystem, but also needed it to be “user friendly.”

web3.storage’s role in the solution

web3.storage lowers the barriers to entry and removes the performance bottlenecks in using a decentralized system. User uploads are verifiable by default due to content addressing and the fact that the web3.storage client knows the CID before the upload begins. The web3.storage global CDN gives Openlinks fast user experience on desktop and mobile while keeping our websites performance competitive with established players. Working with IPFS and web3.storage requires no blockchain, so Openlinks users are excited that interacting with the product doesn’t require gas fees or connecting an external cryptographic wallet.

With web3.storage, Openlinks.io got faster and they had to do less work for happier users.

How it’s going

“Its been amazing to see the community get excited about Openlinks.io! It’s really fun to rush out important features for our users” says Logan.

They’re a huge proponent, saying it’s easier to use web3.storage than a lot of other services and because of the gateway, their API for images is quick. “People just want the best solution for their customers, so we share web3.storage… For what we get, we are happy to pay!”