Penguin: Proof-of-Art (cDNA)

A robust, end-to-end framework for authenticated digital art generation and provenance, leveraging Ethereum Sepolia and IPFS.

Penguin establishes a secure lineage for AI-generated content by combining cryptographic signing, steganographic watermarking, and blockchain-based immutable storage. It provides a complete "cDNA" (creative DNA) for digital assets, ensuring transparency and authenticity from creation to certification.

🚀 Key Features

• Authenticated Generation: Deterministic AI art generation with embedded cryptographic proofs.
• Steganographic Watermarking: Unique, imperceptible noise patterns embedding creator identity.
• Immutable Provenance: On-chain manifest storage on Ethereum Sepolia for tamper-proof history.
• Decentralized Storage: Assets stored on IPFS via Pinata for reliable, distributed access.
• Browser Extension: Seamlessly capture and certify prompts directly from web interfaces.
• Public Verification: Open tools for verifying asset authenticity and lineage without requiring registration.

🛠 Technology Stack

• Backend: Go (Echo Framework)
• Frontend: React, Vite, Tailwind CSS
• Smart Contracts: Solidity, Hardhat, Ethereum Sepolia
• Storage: Pinata (IPFS)
• Machine Learning: TorchServe (PyTorch)
• Cryptography: Ed25519, BLAKE3, SHA-256

📋 Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have the following installed and configured:

• Go 1.22+
• Node.js 20+ (with npm or pnpm)
• Air: For backend hot-reloading (go install github.com/air-verse/air@latest)
• External Accounts:
  • Pinata (for IPFS storage)
  • Infura (for Ethereum RPC)
  • Sepolia Faucet (for testnet ETH)

📦 Installation & Setup

1. Repository Setup

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/yourusername/penguin.git
cd penguin

# Install root dependencies (Hardhat)
npm install

2. Smart Contract Deployment (Sepolia)

Create a .env file at the root to configure your blockchain credentials:

INFURA_PROJECT_ID=your_infura_id
PRIVATE_KEY=0x_your_wallet_private_key

Deploy the contract:

npx hardhat run scripts/deploy.js --network sepolia

Note: This will generate api/internal/eth/abi.json and api/internal/eth/contract_address.txt. Copy the contract address for the backend configuration.

3. Backend Service

Navigate to the API directory and configure the environment:

cd api
go mod tidy
cp .env.example .env

Edit api/.env with your specific keys:

# Ethereum
INFURA_PROJECT_ID=your_infura_id
RPC_URL=https://sepolia.infura.io/v3/your_infura_id
PRIVATE_KEY=0x_your_private_key
CONTRACT_ADDRESS=0x_deployed_contract_address

# IPFS (Pinata)
PINATA_API_KEY=your_pinata_key
PINATA_API_SECRET=your_pinata_secret

Start the backend server:

# Using Air (Recommended for dev)
air

# OR using Go directly
go run ./cmd/server

The server runs on http://localhost:8787 and launches TorchServe on http://127.0.0.1:8080.

4. Frontend Application

cd frontend
npm install

# Optional: Configure API URL
export VITE_API_URL="http://localhost:8787"

npm run dev

Access the dashboard at http://localhost:5173.

5. Chrome Extension

cd extension
npm install
npm run build

Load the dist/ directory as an unpacked extension in Chrome/Chromium (chrome://extensions).

📡 API Overview

Manifests & Provenance

• POST /upload: Upload authentication manifest to IPFS and Ethereum.
• GET /verify?key=/ipfs/<cid>: verify an asset's signature and provenance.

Core Workflows

• POST /generate: Create new certified AI artwork.
• POST /certificate/:id: Retrieve proof certificate.
• POST /model/predict: Run authenticity checks against the local model.

Extension

• POST /ext/push: Receive prompt data captured by the browser extension.

🗺 Roadmap

• Pinata IPFS & Ethereum Sepolia integration
• Watermarking & Certificate generation
• Session graph UI visualization
• Perceptual hashing (pHash)
• Multi-chain support (Polygon, Base)

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License: MIT