Vitalik has been committed to encouraging the development of Ethereum Layer 2, and over the past year, L2 has also experienced rapid expansion. In recent years, Vitalik has supported the addition of more complex features to Layer 2 in order to maintain the purity of the Ethereum chain. However, this idea, which has been upheld for five years, is now being shaken.
This year, the launch of StarkNet airdrops, the mainnet launch of Blast, and other highly anticipated events have brought unprecedented attention to Layer 2 in the market. The ZK-EVM rollup ecosystem composed of StarkNet, Arbitrum, Optimism, and Scroll has made rapid progress in improving blockchain security and transaction speed.
However, Vitalik’s recent expression of doubt raises questions about the development of Layer 2. Is it really due to security issues that he has changed his perspective? Or is there another reason? In response to this, BlockBeats has compiled the views of industry KOLs/Builders on the development of Ethereum Layer 2:
Jason Chen:
Just last May, Vitalik wrote an article titled “Maintaining the Simplicity of the Chain and Avoiding Ethereum’s Consensus Overload.” Today, Vitalik expressed the need to add very complex features to Ethereum to reduce the burden on Layer 2. What prompted Vitalik’s change of thinking in the past year? I think a significant reason is the impact of modularity on the Ethereum ecosystem.
In fact, it is the strategic goal of Ethereum to become the underlying chain that has provided space for modular development. To some extent, Ethereum has cultivated its own potential competitors. In my previous article, I wrote that the ideal outcome for Ethereum is to become an underlying chain that does not directly interact with users, but only focuses on consensus and DA, while leaving the complex business of mass adoption to Layer 2, just like the relationship between the central bank and local banks. The central bank only regulates and controls, while local banks handle the tasks of attracting deposits and opening branches.
But what if the central bank has weak control over local banks? What if local banks no longer report to the central bank for settlement, or even issue their own local currencies?
Therefore, Ethereum has, to some extent, “split” itself, which is equivalent to an active process of modularity, decoupling its capabilities and giving opportunities for third-party modular development. According to the levels of the public chain from top to bottom, it can be divided into execution layer, settlement layer, DA layer, and consensus layer, with corresponding Fuel, DYM, and TIA for the first three layers, gradually “eating away” at Ethereum.
The competitiveness of third-party modular businesses lies in speed, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness. Therefore, Ethereum must accelerate its own changes, including the Kanban upgrade to reduce Layer 2 DA costs, as well as the legitimacy and the idea of making Ethereum more complex to make Layer 2 simpler.
In any case, the most crucial value of Ethereum is security, which is incomparable. The upcoming Osaka upgrade will further enhance Ethereum’s security by implementing stateless clients. This will be Ethereum’s core competitive advantage, and the consensus layer cannot be modularized. With the Kanban upgrade, which reduces Layer 2’s gas fees by more than 10 times, and strengthens the competitiveness of the DA layer, Ethereum is gradually reclaiming its territory layer by layer.
Qi Zhou:
Can ZKEVM, also known as ZK-EVM, mitigate the security risks of Layer 2? If bugs appear in the circuits shared by Layer 1 or Layer 2 ZKEVM and lead to attacks on Layer 2, Layer 1 will also be affected. Therefore, the repair program for Layer 1 (perhaps a reorganization) can immediately intervene to fix it.
Mindao Yang:
Ethereum Layer 2 is redefining Layer 1, while Bitcoin Layer 2 is redefining Layer 2. The modularity, parallel EVM, and economic security output (repledging) of Layer 2 are all competing for new public chain opportunities and narratives, upgrading Layer 2 to a new Layer 1. Bitcoin and Ethereum have become true Layer 0.
26×14:
Vitalik is up to mischief again. By doing so, EVM will become more vulnerable, giving Sol and Sui more opportunities.
Related reports:
Analyzing the Security Risks of “Bitcoin/Ethereum” Layer 2 Using the Barrel Theory
How important is “data availability” to Layer 2 and its inseparability from the Ethereum mainnet?
The political reasons behind Vitalik’s call for ENS: fear of Layer 2 encroaching on data availability?