FAQ
Does a fallen rung mean a quantum computer exists?
A fallen rung proves that someone found that rung's discrete logarithm and claimed it. The ladder is built so the pattern of falls carries the cause:
| What falls | Reading |
|---|---|
| Q-160, with C-160 still Open | Quantum, or an attack specific to small fields: the strongest quantum signal |
| Q-160 and C-160 together | Classical money or a classical algorithm: both cost about 279 classically |
| Q-192 or Q-224 | Only a quantum computer or a classical breakthrough fits; both put 256-bit keys at risk |
| T-256k or T-255e | Breaking secp256k1 or Ed25519 keys is possible |
Rung-event markets settle on the fact of the fall. The quantum-signal market settles on the first row.
Why not one 256-bit canary?
A canary at 256 bits fires at the moment theft becomes possible, which leaves no time to act. Canary's lower rungs are cheaper for a quantum computer than secp256k1, so they fall first.
Why does the ladder start at 160 bits?
Below about 150 bits, rented GPUs could solve a rung classically and collect the bounty, which would turn the signal into noise. Q-160 sits about 211 times beyond the hardest public puzzle still open, roughly $1–10B of rented GPU time.
Why would a solver claim instead of staying quiet?
Below 256 bits a rung's key guards nothing but its bounty, so claiming is the only way to profit from solving it, and it brings priority with it. A claim is legal, has no victim and can be pseudonymous. If k is ever published anywhere, anyone can claim the rung with it.
Who decides how a market resolves?
Nobody. resolve reads the rung's RungState account and the clock, and anyone can call it. Canary's crank calls it for every market.
Can a sponsor take a bounty back?
Not before 2040-01-01. After that date, receipt holders reclaim their share of any bounty that is still unclaimed.
Why is everything in USDC?
A rung falling would most likely move crypto prices exactly when payouts come due. Collateral in SOL, staked SOL or BTC would lose value at the moment it has to pay, so markets and bounties settle in USDC.
Is there a Canary token?
Yes: CANARY, with a fixed supply of 1,000,000,000, all of it sold in one public launch with no presale, team, investor or reserved allocation. The protocol's 70 % of every settlement fee buys CANARY on the market and burns it. CANARY is never collateral, a resolution input or a vote on rungs or vaults, so the trigger stays neutral. See The CANARY token.
Where is my Falcon-512 key kept?
Only in the file you save and in the page's memory while you use it. The app never stores it and never sends it anywhere. See Keep funds in a Q-Vault.
Which wallets work?
Browser wallets that support the Solana wallet standard, such as Phantom, Solflare and Backpack. Hardware wallets that need a USB connection don't. See Connect a wallet.
Why is open interest capped?
So that buying YES and then paying for a brute-force attack on the rung never pays. Each rung's cap is at most 1 % of the low end of its classical break cost, about $10M for Q-160.
Can US persons use the markets?
Markets exclude US persons in v0. Bounties, Q-Vaults and RungState are open to everyone.
Can my program read a rung?
Yes, directly, in any instruction: see Read RungState.