EVM Ecosystem — Monthly Report
(April 2024)
The EVM ecosystem article series is provided by Ed Prinz, co-founder and President of DLT Austria, and are aimed for the experienced reader. If you require specific background to get you started on EVM technicalities, please check out this source here.
1. Environment News
Arbitrum BOLD Testnet Live: The Next Step in Decentralization
Offchain Labs has introduced the testnet for Arbitrum BOLD, a new-generation dispute resolution protocol that enhances the functionality of optimistic rollups through interactive fraud proofs. This development marks a significant progression toward fully permissionless validation on Arbitrum chains and aims to increase decentralisation.
Immediate Next Steps
Deployment of BOLD on the public testnet, initially validating assertions on Ethereum Sepolia.
Community members are invited to deploy BOLD validators to test the new dispute resolution protocol.
A proposal and subsequent Tally vote are anticipated to activate BOLD on Arbitrum Sepolia.
Future Outlook
The integration of BOLD is set to address concerns highlighted in the L2 Beat risk analysis, specifically the issue of whitelist-based state validation, by transitioning to a model where any participant can act as a validator. Plans are underway to extend BOLD’s implementation to major Arbitrum networks like Arbitrum One and Nova, pending DAO approvals.
Accelerating Ethereum — Enhancing Optimistic Rollup Finality with a Check-In Model
The proposal for a fast finality optimistic rollup incorporates a check-in based model aimed at shortening the traditional 7-day challenge window. This approach relies on the assumption of an honest minority to maintain system integrity and security.
The article proposes a check-in based challenge model for Optimistic Rollups, aiming to reduce the traditional 7-day finality window to a few Ethereum blocks. It introduces a system where validators regularly signal the correctness of state transitions, countering censorship attacks. This model enables an honest minority to prevent mass censorship effectively, significantly shortening the finality time for Optimistic Rollups while ensuring security against censorship attacks, thus providing a more efficient and secure mechanism for transaction validation on Ethereum.
Source: https://ethresear.ch/t/why-wait-a-week-fast-finality-optimistic-rollups/18868
Vitalik’s Concrete Proposal for Correlated Attester Penalties — Building on Toni Wahrstätter’s Analysis
Vitalik Buterin proposes a mechanism for imposing penalties on Ethereum validators who produce correlated attestations, aiming to enhance the protocol’s security. The proposal, inspired by Toni Wahrstätter’s research on correlated attestation penalties, suggests that validators should receive penalties not only for their own mistakes but also when they make errors similar to a large group of other validators simultaneously. This approach is designed to discourage coordinated dishonesty or negligence among validators. The proposed penalties are structured to scale with the size of the correlated group, thereby increasing the risk and potential cost of collusion.
Source: https://ethresear.ch/t/a-concrete-proposal-for-correlated-attester-penalties/19341
Arbitrum BOLD Goes Live — Dedicated Testnet Launch for Dispute Resolution Protocol
Arbitrum BOLD, a new dispute resolution protocol designed to enhance decentralisation, is now live on a dedicated testnet. This launch marks a significant step in testing and refining the system, which aims to optimise security and efficiency in dispute resolution on the Arbitrum network. The protocol is built to handle increased transaction volume while maintaining the integrity and reliability of the network, setting the stage for a potential future rollout on the mainnet.
L2BEAT Costs — Comprehensive Breakdown of Layer 2 Transaction Costs
L2BEAT provides an in-depth analysis of transaction costs across various Layer 2 scaling solutions for Ethereum. The report offers a detailed comparison of fees, highlighting the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of different protocols. Key metrics include transaction throughput, gas usage, and the cost implications of using specific Layer 2 solutions. This analysis serves as a valuable resource for users and developers making informed decisions about which Layer 2 options best suit their needs for scalability and expense management.
Source: https://l2beat.com/scaling/costs
2. Development News
Ethereum Improvement and Application Standards Update — New Opcodes, Gas Cost Adjustments, and Innovative NFT Integrations
EIPs:
- EIP7664: Introduce Access-Key opcode
- EIP7684: Refund deposits for unique credentials
- EIP7685: Requests for general-purpose execution layers
- EIP7686: Fixed limits for EVM memory
- EIP7688: Consensus data structures with forward compatibility
- EIP7691: Enhanced blob throughput
- Meta EIP7692: Meta EVM Object Format (EOF)
- EIP7693: Quantum-safe migration with backward compatibility
RIPs (Rollup Improvement Proposals):
- RIP7696: Generic precompile for double scalar multiplication
- EIP7666: Adapt identity precompile to EVM specifications
- EIP7667: Increase gas prices for hash functions
- EIP7668: Eliminate bloom filters
- EIP7669: Establish fixed EVM memory limits
- EIP7670: Streamline attestation formats
- EIP7675: Include EIPs retroactively
- EIP7676: EOF — Set up for extended address space
ERCs (application layer):
- ERC7680: Tokens with structured liquidity layers
- ERC7681: Hybrid multi-token standard (ERC20 & ERC1155)
- ERC7682: Support for auxiliary funds
- ERC7683: Cross-chain operations (proposed by Uniswap & Across Protocol)
- ERC7687: AUTHCALL extension for ERC4626 deposits/withdrawals
- ERC7689: Intelligent blobs (state machines over blobs)
- ERC7690: Union lock (utilizing TSTORE/TLOAD)
- ERC7694: Solana-based storage management for CCIP-Write
- ERC7695: NFT ownership transfer and contextual management
- ERC7672: Event-driven functionalities for NFTs
- ERC7673: Unique base256emoji address identifiers
- ERC7674: Extend temporary approvals for ERC20 tokens
- ERC7677: Capability for paymaster web services
- ERC7679: UserOperation construction tool
- ERC7660: Schedule periodic token releases
- ERC7661: Develop extended multiphase fractional NFTs
- ERC7662: Implement AI agent NFTs
Vitalik’s Draft EIPs:
- Eliminate the identity precompile
- Increase gas prices for hash functions
- Discontinue bloom filters
OpenZeppelin Foundry Upgrades — Enhanced Deployment and Management of Upgradeable Contracts with Integrated Safety Checks
The OpenZeppelin Foundry Upgrades module is specifically designed for deploying and managing upgradeable smart contracts, incorporating essential safety checks to ensure the integrity of upgrades. It facilitates straightforward installation and usage, allowing developers to deploy both UUPS and transparent proxies, and manage upgrades with rigorous safety protocols. The system requires certain configurations like enabling ffi and ast in foundry.toml for complete functionality. This module is part of a broader effort to streamline contract upgrades while ensuring compliance with security standards.
Source: https://github.com/OpenZeppelin/openzeppelin-foundry-upgrades#readme
Solidity Token Types Overview — Exploring Drop-In Replacements and Interfaces for ERC20, ERC721, ERC721Receiver, ERC4626, & ERC6909
The ‘Token Types’ project provides a novel approach to Solidity smart contract interactions by introducing type-driven enhancements. Instead of using traditional interfaces, which can be inefficient due to unnecessary memory allocations, Token Types introduces custom type aliases that reduce memory usage and streamline contract operations. These types, like ‘ERC20’ and ‘ERC721’, act as drop-in replacements for standard interfaces, retaining the functionality but optimising performance by minimising memory operations during external calls. This method ensures more efficient smart contract execution and better resource management on the Ethereum blockchain.
Source: https://github.com/jtriley-eth/token-types#readme
Aderyn — A powerful Solidity static analyser that takes a bird’s eye view over your smart contracts
Aderyn is a Rust-based static analyser specifically designed for Solidity smart contracts. It helps identify vulnerabilities within the Solidity codebase, significantly reducing the risk of undetected issues. Aderyn is equipped with a variety of static vulnerability detectors and offers fast, command-line operations. It integrates into both small-scale and enterprise-level development workflows, supporting modular detection and AST traversal. Aderyn is particularly beneficial for protocol engineers and security researchers looking to ensure code security and efficiency.
Source: https://github.com/Cyfrin/aderyn#readme
3. Research News
Foundations of minimum viable issuance
The concept of “Minimum Viable Issuance” (MVI) in Ethereum refers to the principle of minimising the amount of new Ether issued, maintaining it at the lowest level necessary to secure the network. The discussions around MVI consider the implications of such a policy under both the Proof of Work (PoW) and Proof of Stake (PoS) mechanisms. A specific focus is placed on designing reward curves with capped issuance, which limits the maximum issuance at a predefined validator deposit size. This approach aligns with similar strategies to manage issuance without compromising the security and operational efficiency of the Ethereum network. The capped issuance model aims to balance the incentives for stakers with the overall economic stability of the Ether supply.
Source: https://notes.ethereum.org/@anderselowsson/Foundations-of-MVI
Reward curve with capped issuance
The document on “Reward Curve with Capped Issuance” proposes a new framework for Ethereum’s reward issuance mechanism. This model introduces a cap on issuance at a specific validator deposit size, effectively setting a maximum limit to the amount of new Ether that can be issued. This approach is designed to replicate the current reward structure up to the cap and then halts any further increase in issuance, which aims to manage inflation while still incentivising validators. The implementation of this capped reward curve is intended to be straightforward, with potential benefits for network security and economic stability. The analysis also discusses various trade-offs and compares this model to other issuance strategies.
Source: https://notes.ethereum.org/@anderselowsson/Reward-curve-with-capped-issuance
Social slashing our legs off — changing the issuance curve
The article “Social Slashing Our Legs Off — Changing the Issuance Curve” discusses the implications of altering Ethereum’s issuance curve to cap the total amount of ETH staked. The author argues that targeting only the base staking reward is insufficient without also addressing external rewards such as those from liquid staking tokens (LSTs), restaking, and exchanges. Without such measures, understanding the true demand for staking and managing the yield curve effectively is challenging, potentially leading to centralisation under extreme measures like negative rates. The piece emphasises the necessity of swift action to prevent entities from ossifying the blockchain, advocating for a comprehensive approach that includes both issuance adjustments and direct interventions in external reward structures.
Source: https://mirror.xyz/themandalore.eth/y4wDpXtVv-3rNf_zVjkXsXuThvrF32NdpNRJH_rtHiY
Unbundling staking - Towards rainbow staking
The “Unbundling Staking: Towards Rainbow Staking” proposal on Ethereum Research suggests redefining the roles of stakers to align with their strengths, leading to a more diversified and efficient ecosystem. It introduces a distinction between heavy (high-risk) and light (low- or no-risk) services, enabling stakers to choose roles that match their capabilities, ranging from individual participants to professional service providers. This approach aims to improve the system’s flexibility and resilience, enhancing participation and security by leveraging the diverse capabilities within the Ethereum community.
Source: https://ethresear.ch/t/unbundling-staking-towards-rainbow-staking/18683
