What is the National Diet Library (NDL)?
The National Diet Library is Japan's equivalent of the U.S. Library of Congress or the British Library. Under the National Diet Library Law (Articles 25 & 25-4), publishers are required to deposit copies of their publications. Once deposited, materials are permanently preserved as part of Japan's national heritage. This legal framework is the foundation of TokiStorage's national-layer preservation.
1. Greetings from the Founder
Leaving a permanent record of “I existed”—now the means to do so is open to everyone. As records accumulate, dialogue across generations emerges.
Can you name your great-grandparents?
TokiStorage's mission is the "democratization of proof of existence"—providing the only free, fully digital means to make everyone's voice and existence part of the permanent national archive. This newsletter documents that mission, and is itself a "proof of existence" permanently preserved at the National Diet Library.
2. What is TokiStorage?
Mission: You Become a Story
TokiStorage is a service that perpetuates your proof of existence through three-layer distributed storage across physical, national, and private layers. Founded in February 2026 as a sole proprietorship.
Three-Layer Distributed Architecture
| Layer | Medium | Characteristics |
|---|---|---|
| Physical | Quartz glass / UV-resistant laminate | No power or servers needed. Tangible proof you can hold |
| National | National Diet Library (legal deposit) | Institutional permanent preservation by national law |
| Private | GitHub | Globally distributed hosting |
This architecture satisfies the industry-standard "3-2-1 Rule"—3 copies, 2 different media types, 1 offsite—with no single point of failure. As long as any one layer survives, your proof of existence endures.
3. Technology: Making Voice a Permanent National Record
Audio is inherently volatile—without playback devices or servers, it simply disappears. TokiStorage uses proprietary voice encoding technology to record up to 30 seconds of voice in a single QR code. Voice is converted to QR codes, embedded in PDFs, and deposited as this newsletter (a serial publication) with the National Diet Library.
Why This is the Only Way
The NDL's online material collection accepts only three formats: PDF, EPUB, and DAISY. Audio files (MP3, WAV, etc.) do not qualify as "books or serial publications" and cannot be deposited under the current legal framework.
Physical media (CD/DVD) can be deposited by mail, but this incurs manufacturing and shipping costs and is not digitally complete.
The conversion pipeline voice → QR code → PDF → newsletter (serial publication) is the only method that satisfies all four conditions: free, fully digital, reversible (original audio can be restored), and legally eligible for deposit.
4. This Newsletter Itself is Proof of Existence
Here lies an important self-reference. This PDF is deposited with the National Diet Library. In other words, the very document you are reading right now is itself "proof of existence" that will be permanently preserved by institutional mandate.
The TokiStorage Newsletter is not mere PR. It is the "medium" that carries customers' voices (audio QR codes) to the national archive, and simultaneously serves as proof of existence for the TokiStorage enterprise itself.
5. Featured Essays — Why We Built It This Way
TokiStorage's design philosophy is documented in a series of essays. Here are three directly related to this inaugural issue.
30 Seconds of Voice
When the audio capacity of a QR code expanded from 2 seconds to 30, what changed wasn't a number—it was the quality of experience. 2 seconds was a technical proof of concept; 30 seconds became proof of existence.
The 3-2-1 Backup Rule — Foundation of Three-Layer Storage
The "3-2-1 rule" is the global standard for data backup, a principle proven over half a century. TokiStorage's three-layer distributed storage extends this principle from "data protection" to "proof of existence."
Openism — Structurally Unable to Hide
When organizations hold secrets, resources are consumed by managing them. TokiStorage adopted a design that is not "choosing not to hide" but "structurally unable to hide." The act of engraving QR codes on quartz is itself a physical declaration of openness.
Browse all essays from the essay navigation.
6. What's Next
In upcoming issues, we plan to include:
- Customer voices (TokiQR codes included with permission)
- Sado Island physical archive site construction report
- Partner and patron introductions
7. Appendix: TokiQR — A Message from the Founder
As the appendix to this inaugural issue, we include the first TokiQR created by TokiStorage founder Takuya Sato. Scan the QR code printed on the final page of the deposit PDF (available for download below) with your smartphone to hear the founder's voice.
This is not a technology demo. When this newsletter is deposited with the National Diet Library, this voice becomes part of the permanent national archive. A QR code on paper that lets anyone, at any time, hear the founder's voice—that is TokiQR.
No server required. The data is fully embedded within the QR code itself. Playable on any smartphone with an internet connection. Even 100 years from now, as long as this QR code survives, the voice can be heard.
Scanning tip: Use 3x zoom on your camera and hold it at a slight distance for easier recognition.
Learn more about TokiQR →
Download Deposit PDF
The PDF version deposited with the National Diet Library (with colophon and cover)
Download PDF