Internet Computer (ICP)
Unlock Schedule
Internet Computer (ICP) Token Unlock & Vesting Schedule
The unlock chart above provides a clear visual overview of the Internet Computer (ICP) token release schedule, showing when and how tokens enter circulation across investor, team, treasury, and community allocations. Understanding these tokenomics dynamics is critical for evaluating potential supply pressure, inflation impact, and market liquidity over time — key factors that can influence ICP price performance.
Each color segment in the chart corresponds to a specific allocation group described in the Allocations section below. Underlying assumptions and data models used to reconstruct this schedule are explained in detail under Assumptions, while broader utility insights and token use cases are covered in Tokenomics & Utility.
Tokenomics & Utility
The ICP token has three main roles:
Governance: ICP holders stake tokens into “neurons” to participate in the Network Nervous System (NNS). Neurons vote on proposals that upgrade protocol code, onboard node providers, adjust economic parameters, and more. Neuron voting power increases with stake size, age, and lockup (“dissolve delay”) from 6 months up to 8 years. Active participation earns voting rewards. (internetcomputer.org)
Computation: Developers convert ICP into cycles to pay for compute, storage, and special features like HTTPS outcalls and threshold signatures. Cycles are burned as they are used. (internetcomputer.org)
Incentives: Node providers receive ICP rewards set by NNS policy; governance rewards are minted as “maturity” and can later be spawned into ICP. These are the main inflation sources, while cycles burning and fees provide deflationary pressure. (internetcomputer.org)
ICP tokenomics are designed so application costs stay stable (thanks to the XDR‑pegged cycles), while supply dynamics balance new issuance for security and governance with burning from real network use. In short, Internet Computer tokenomics link utility and governance to the ICP token in a single design. (internetcomputer.org)
Assumptions
- Genesis total supply baseline of ~469 million ICP on 2021-05-10
Official Internet Computer Wiki cites 469M total supply at Genesis; used for converting published % allocations into absolute tokens.
- Seed donors release modeled as 49 equal tranches (1 immediate + 48 monthly)
DFINITY describes seed allocations as 49 neurons with dissolve delays at ~30-day increments; equal tranche size per neuron assumed for aggregate modeling.
- Airdrop distributed in 12 equal monthly installments starting at Genesis
DFINITY article specifies 12 equal monthly installments via CoinList beginning on or shortly after Genesis.
- Strategic round vests monthly over 36 months from Genesis
DFINITY’s presale announcement states strategic allocations had a three‑year vest; exact monthly cadence not specified, so modeled linearly by month.
- Presale vests monthly over 12 months from Genesis
DFINITY did not publish definitive presale vesting details; community and historical communications indicated a 12‑month monthly schedule around Genesis; used here for charting with low confidence.
- Other genesis cohorts (Foundation, ICA, Team, Advisors, Early Contributors, Strategic Partnerships, Initial Community/Dev Grants, Node Operators) modeled as a 4‑year linear vest from Genesis
Public primary sources lack precise vesting schedules per cohort. Messari indicates ICP vesting completed by 2025‑05‑10; aggregated 4‑year monthly vest used for visualization. Actual unlock timing varies by cohort and neuron dissolve behavior.
- Governance rewards modeled from official formula on a fixed genesis-supply baseline for an 8‑year decay to 5% and 6 additional years at 5%
Exact minted rewards depend on dynamic total supply, participation, and burns; for a deterministic monthly series we integrate the documented R(t) against the genesis base and ignore compounding/burns.
- Node provider rewards aggregate 2021-05-10 to 2025-10-09 approximated as 5.0M ICP, linear monthly
NP rewards are minted monthly per node in XDR terms and vary with node count and ICP price. A 2024 proposal capped monthly NP rewards at 100k ICP; we approximate cumulative issuance for this window for charting.
- Supply is not hard-capped; ongoing inflation via voting rewards and node provider rewards and deflation via cycles burn
Official docs describe ongoing minting and burning; thus total_supply set to null and finite modeling windows used for issuance allocations.
- 1. https://learn.internetcomputer.org/hc/en-us/articles/34142993417108-Voting-Rewards
- 2. https://learn.internetcomputer.org/hc/en-us/articles/34090810571284-Tokenomics
- 3. https://medium.com/dfinity/how-to-access-seed-and-airdrop-icp-tokens-and-participate-in-the-internet-computer-network-e6cd663a0c3c
- 4. https://medium.com/dfinity/nns-and-decentralization-5f4963e83df7
- 5. https://medium.com/dfinity/announcing-the-dfinity-presale-fundraise-and-public-airdrop-cdea19892ef6
- 6. https://dashboard.internetcomputer.org/circulation
- 7. https://dashboard.internetcomputer.org/proposal/64141
- 8. https://wiki.internetcomputer.org/wiki/Node_Provider_Remuneration
- 9. https://wiki.internetcomputer.org/wiki/Total_supply%2C_circulating_supply%2C_and_staked_ICP
- 10. https://internetcomputer.org/docs/references/system-canisters/
- 11. https://messari.io/project/internet-computer/token-unlocks
- 12. https://medium.com/dfinity/the-community-led-governance-of-the-internet-computer-b863cd2975ba
Allocations
Description
#69
Internet Computer is a network that enables end-to-end decentralization of online systems and services. It uses a set of protocols that allow data centers around the world to form a World Computer blockchain that can host any kind of software or data.
| Sector: | Layer 1 |
| Blockchain: | Other L1 |