Orca is a user-friendly decentralized exchange (DEX) built on the Solana blockchain. It operates as an Automated Market Maker (AMM), allowing users to swap assets, provide liquidity, and earn yield through a straightforward interface. Orca aims to make decentralized finance (DeFi) accessible to everyone by providing simple and effective financial tools. It also functions as a Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO), meaning that holders of the ORCA token can participate in governance, formulating and refining proposals that guide the direction of the platform.

Orca operates around a Concentrated Liquidity Automated Market Maker (CLAMM) model. This model allows users to trade tokens quickly, with low slippage, thanks to the capital efficiency of Orca's CLAMM pools. As a liquidity provider, users can contribute to permission-less pools, a feature that enables anyone to create a pool for a wide range of SPL tokens with adjustable fee tiers. Orca's smart contracts are double audited and open-source, aiming to ensure transparency and security in all transactions.

Orca offers a variety of use cases for different types of users. Traders can use Orca to exchange crypto assets, with a user interface designed for simplicity and efficiency. Liquidity providers can take advantage of Orca's concentrated liquidity pools, which offer advanced ways of operating that surpass traditional order books. Holders of the ORCA token can engage in governance, helping to shape the future of the platform. Lastly, developers can tap into Orca's efficient source of liquidity on Solana, using Orca's open-source smart contracts and SDK to build and integrate their projects.

Orca started from humble beginnings, with two builders working at a desk in Tokyo, without venture funding or experience running a startup. Despite these challenges, Orca has grown within the Solana ecosystem. Today, Orca operates as a DAO, with powers delegated to a DAO council established through a vote. Over time, Orca has evolved to offer a range of features, including a new, innovative user interface for traders, permission-less pools for liquidity providers, and governance participation for ORCA token holders.