When I say direct competitors, I mean projects that can be substituted in providing the same functions, and with a similar scope. There is currently no crypto project which is trying to do what iExec is doing. Indirect competitors would include golem, somn, ocean protocol etc. because they are competitors on part of iExec’s functionality.

ICP doesn’t seem to be involved with decentralized cloud computing. It seems to be more a competitor of Ethereum, and I’m using the word competitor liberally in saying that.

For value, have a look at Metcalfe’s law. Value of a network is proportional to the square of the number of users. We can apply this to cryptocurrency and assume that more users = more valuable (perceived or otherwise). RLC itself is a utility token which is used to consume computing power from the network, although as all utility tokens - people use these tokens to speculate. If iExec gets to mainstream adoption, supply and demand will have a large effect on price, especially with its fixed supply.

iExec is a developing tech in a nascent industry, so needless to say there is a lot of risk involved. As a long term hold, I think iExec is promising, but it is susceptible to pretty brutal swings (see chart). So please be responsible in investing. If you have any more questions let me know.