Kiwix and Swarm partner up to preserve free online access to information

The world is facing extreme uncertainty amidst a socio-economic crisis, and censorship is ramping up to levels never seen before.

As a main source of information on the Web throughout the world, Wikipedia is regularly the target of censorship attempts and information manipulation as part of various political and geopolitical strategies.

It is crucial to keep the internet open and freedom of speech intact, getting all the factual information and different perspectives to form our own informed opinions. That is why maintaining unrestricted access to information and knowledge is one of the core principles explored by Kiwix and the Swarm Association.

Setting the foundations for a Web3 library

Kiwix, a protocol developed to store and search for content offline, has partnered with the Swarm Association to build an innovative proof-of-concept (PoC) for an uncensorable mirrored version of Wikipedia.

The PoC will be used to show how Wikipedia could be distributed on the Swarm network and thus become increasingly resistant to censorship. Kiwix already hosts the Wikipedia library offline, helping people access information anytime and anywhere, but how exactly will Swarm’s decentralised version of Wikipedia take shape?

A read-only snapshot of Wikipedia will be stored in a decentralised fashion, enabling content to remain accessible even when the main domain is not (e.g. when blocked). In doing so, anyone running a node and connected to the Swarm network will be able to access and share information, even in locations where internet access is restricted.

Leveraging Kiwix, the Swarm protocol enables free and uncensored access to information.

Teaming up during the WAM Hackathon

To achieve a decentralised, transparent, and resilient Wikipedia, Kiwix and Swarm have joined forces on the WE ARE MILLIONS (WAM) hackathon. The event, which began on the 1st of March and will continue until the 21st of March, will be crucial for the development of the revolutionary proof-of-concept (PoC) for uncensorable content.

Closing thoughts

As we shift towards a new era of decentralisation, the predominance of decentralised technologies will grow. Protocols like Swarm, Kiwix, and other decentralised data systems will become the building blocks for the new Web3, enabling people to freely communicate, share knowledge, and regain sovereignty over their data.

The decentralised Wikipedia, built with Kiwix and Swarm, will be an instrumental tool to democratise and distribute knowledge and contribute towards a better future.