ETH Voices: Domenico Perri from ENS Labs
In this conversation, Domenico notes a significant shift in mainstream perception of web3, with politics and traditional finance increasingly engaging in discussions rather than dismissing it. He is particularly excited about addressing Layer 2 fragmentation issues and highlights ENS Labs’ proposal to expand to Layer 2 with ENSv2.
Welcome to EthCC Voices, the Medium Series for the EthCC community. Taking place in Brussels from 8–11 July 2024, the conference organised by Ethereum France is regarded as Europe’s leading Ethereum conference for the community by the community!
Domenico Perri, UX and Design at ENS Labs, the organization behind the open-source blockchain naming protocol, Ethereum Name Service (ENS).
What do you think are the highlight moments in crypto over the past year?
There has been a significant shift in mainstream perception of our industry and that’s been most interesting to me. We’re seeing a shift across politics and traditional finance with more discussions taking place rather than simply dismissing web3 outright. It definitely feels like over the last year more “established” circles are taking crypto and web3 more seriously and seeing it as a maturing ecosystem.
What are some new trends you think will emerge over the next 12 months, which ones are you excited about?
There are many trends already making their presence known, but the one area I am most excited about, as someone focusing on user experience (UX), is the Layer 2 fragmentation issues. I think the next year will see great investment in solving this as it’s one of the biggest challenges Ethereum currently faces.
So while there are new trends that are looking ready to emerge, I think the most important, or at least important from an onboarding and development perspective, is the L2 space.
How has being a part of the EthCC impacted you/your team thus far? Has anything come out of it?
EthCC is one of the premier Ethereum events of the year and it’s been great to see the serendipitous conversations that come out of this melting pot of enthusiastic builders. ENS Labs has enjoyed participating and being able to meet community members and like-minded projects.
What impact do you think Ethereum updates this year will have on the overall ecosystem, crypto projects, and mainstream adoption?
With the ongoing development and discussion around smart contract functionality, I expect updates related to this topic to continue to be important this year. With these developments, such as EIP 7702, we should expect to see wallet interactions become a lot simpler. This is crucial as wallets are the first hurdle for new users and shouldn’t be neglected as we work to improve this ecosystem for adoption.
At ENS Labs, accessibility and simplification are key to how we see the future of Ethereum and Web3 more broadly. Making the gateway to decentralized finance and decentralized identity easier.
Anything else to add? (feel free to share more about the projects you are working on)
ENS Labs recently announced its proposal to expand to Layer 2, with ENSv2. This move aims to benefit ENS users with a more streamlined integration process and improved UX. It also opens up more possibilities for name holders who will be able to better manage their .eth domain names with less cost.
