Parity Technologies is the company behind Polkadot, a multi-chain network designed to connect specialized blockchains into a unified ecosystem. Founded in 2015 by Gavin Wood (co-founder of Ethereum) and Jutta Steiner, Parity has its roots in building core Ethereum infrastructure before pivoting to create an entirely new blockchain architecture.
Polkadot’s design revolves around a central relay chain that provides shared security to connected “parachains” — independent blockchains that can be customized for specific use cases. This shared security model means smaller chains don’t need to bootstrap their own validator sets, a significant barrier for new blockchain projects. Parachain slots are allocated through auctions, with projects locking up DOT tokens to secure their spot.
Parity also built Substrate, an open-source blockchain development framework that lets teams build custom chains with pre-built modules. Substrate has been adopted by projects well beyond the Polkadot ecosystem — it’s become a popular choice for anyone wanting to build a blockchain without starting from scratch.
The company is based in Berlin and London, with a distributed team of engineers who’ve contributed to some of the most technically complex code in the blockchain space. Parity’s Rust-based clients for both Ethereum and Polkadot are known for their performance and reliability.
In 2023, Polkadot began a transition to “Polkadot 2.0,” which replaces the auction-based parachain model with a more flexible system where blockspace can be purchased on-demand. This shift aims to lower the barrier to entry and make Polkadot’s infrastructure accessible to a wider range of projects.
