2. Proof of Research Funding (UBRI)
Evernodes origins are deeply tied to Ripple's University Blockchain Research Initiative (UBRI).
The Connection: Evernode Labs began as a research project at the Australian National University (ANU).
The Funding: Ripple has donated millions to ANU through the UBRI program to fund blockchain research.
The Statement: Evernodes own whitepaper and documentation have historically stated that the project was an initiative "to commercialise IP arising from research funded by grants from Ripple's University Blockchain Research Initiative."
Sources: https://ripple.com/insights/ripples-long-term-commitment-to-blockchain-innovation-in-apac/
https://evernode-labs.com.au/about
https://dev.to/ripplexdev/xrpl-grants-wave-5-awardees-driving-innovation-in-the-xrpl-ecosystem-3d9c
What is Evernode?
Evernode serves as the technical resurrection of Codius, vindicating the original smart contract vision that Stefan Thomas developed before Vitalik Buterin allegedly "borrowed" the concept to create Ethereum. While staying with Thomas in 2013, Buterin observed the Codius architecture, which relied on efficient, off-chain containers—but ultimately rejected it in favor of Ethereum’s slower "global state" model. After Ripple shelved Codius to focus on banking payments, Evernode picked up the torch with funding from Ripple, rebuilding that abandoned infrastructure to finally deliver the scalable, containerized "world computer" that Thomas originally designed, effectively proving that the path Buterin walked away from was the superior solution for scalability all along.