Build Decentralized Systems That Actually Work
Learning decentralized networks isn't about memorizing protocols. It's about understanding how distributed systems handle real challenges when thousands of nodes need to agree on something.
Start Your Journey
How This Program Actually Works
We've taught enough engineers to know what trips people up. So we built the program around the stuff that actually matters when you're building distributed systems.
Foundation Phase
You'll start with consensus mechanisms and Byzantine fault tolerance. Not just theory though—you'll see why these matter when a network has to stay consistent across continents. Takes about eight weeks if you're putting in evenings and weekends.
Implementation Track
Then you build something. Could be a distributed ledger, a gossip protocol implementation, or a DHT system. We've seen people tackle projects from peer discovery algorithms to basic chain structures. This part usually runs twelve weeks.
System Design
Final stretch covers how you'd architect this stuff in production. Network topology decisions, partition handling, performance trade-offs. The kind of choices you'll need to defend in technical reviews.
Where People End Up
Leif Thorvaldsen
Infrastructure Engineer, Finance SectorStarted the program in autumn 2023 while working backend systems. Spent most of his project time on partition tolerance—how networks stay functional when connections drop. He's now working on distributed settlement systems and mentioned the consensus module saved him months of trial-and-error when they hit Byzantine scenarios last quarter.
Siobhan Fitzwilliam
Protocol DeveloperCame from embedded systems background. Found the transition challenging at first—distributed thinking requires different mental models than single-device programming. By month four she'd built a functioning gossip protocol. Now she designs network layers for IoT mesh systems and says understanding Merkle structures finally clicked during her capstone project.
Dmitri Volkov
Systems ArchitectJoined early 2024 after his company started migrating to distributed architectures. Focused his project work on network optimization—latency improvements, throughput testing, that sort of thing. Still reaches out occasionally with questions about specific edge cases. Last I heard he's leading their node infrastructure redesign.
What You'll Actually Learn
Here's what the curriculum covers. Each module includes implementation exercises because you can't really understand this stuff without writing code.
Consensus and Agreement
How distributed nodes reach agreement. You'll work through Paxos, Raft, and BFT protocols. The module walks through why each exists and when you'd pick one over another. Includes debugging scenarios where consensus fails.
Network Architecture
Designing topology that survives real network conditions. Covers peer discovery, routing strategies, and handling network partitions. You'll model different architectures and test them under simulated failures.
Data Structures for Distribution
Merkle trees, hash chains, and CRDTs. Why certain data structures work better in distributed contexts. You'll implement several from scratch to understand the trade-offs between consistency, availability, and partition tolerance.
Security in Decentralized Systems
Cryptographic primitives, Sybil resistance, and attack vectors specific to distributed networks. More practical than theoretical—you'll identify vulnerabilities in sample systems and propose mitigations.