The Internet Computer Network recently announced an ambitious inflation governance plan, with the core goal of reducing the ICP inflation rate by at least 70% by the end of 2026. This is not just empty talk — the official has provided detailed implementation paths and data support.

The plan adopts a dual approach, focusing on both supply and demand. On the supply side, the reward structure will be adjusted to reduce ICP minting, while on the demand side, platform usage will be accelerated to promote token burning. Just the measures on the supply side alone can have a significant effect: the ICP minting rate is expected to decrease from 9.72% in January 2026 to 5.42% in January 2027, a drop of 44%. Once both directions work together, surpassing the 70% inflation reduction target is basically a certainty.

The current voting reward system indeed has many pain points. The maximum unlock period of 8 years requires extremely high rewards to compensate for liquidity loss, which directly increases inflation pressure. Another extreme is the minimum 6-month unlock threshold, which is too high and keeps new participants out. Plus, with no cap on the reward pool, the supply increase after the launch phase will only exacerbate inflation.

The reform plan is straightforward: reduce the maximum unlock delay from 8 years to 2 years, and change the minimum unlock period for voting from 6 months to 2 weeks. Existing neurons will migrate and adapt all at once. The reward curve will also be rewritten — replacing the current linear model with a quadratic convex curve, increasing the maximum reward coefficient from 2 to 3. This way, short-term stakers still receive reasonable returns, but participants locking for 2 years long-term will get stronger incentives. The design logic is very clear: it aims to attract new entrants while rewarding long-term commitments.