This edition of the newsletter dives into some ecosystem updates from Sonic Labs, a rebrand from Fantom, and their current bounty program - Sonic Boom. We'll also share some interesting articles, portfolio updates and market highlights.
1. Research Articles
a) The State Of Fraud Proofs In Ethereum L2s
• This article aims analyse the fraud proof and challenge mechanisms of optimistic rollups and how each is working toward achieving Stage 2.
• Additionally, it explores the future of optimistic rollups and fraud proof systems.
b) Eliminating Bridging: Particle Network's Vision for Chain Abstraction
• The usability of blockchain services remains a critical issue, with fragmentation being a major barrier for new users. Chain abstraction aims to address this by simplifying the user experience across multiple blockchains.
• The success of Particle Network's mainnet launch could significantly impact the future development of chain abstraction and the overall usability of blockchain technology.
c) What is NOT Chain Abstraction?
• Chain abstraction aims to simplify the user and developer experience in crypto by abstracting away multi-chain complexities.
• It is not a panacea for all on-chain complexities and does not eradicate chains. While it offers significant benefits, it may not be the final frontier of crypto.
2. Portfolio Updates
a) Arrakis Finance
• The CVMM problem in DeFi is hindering retail users' profits. Arrakis aims to solve this by building a DVMM, which uses Liquidity Animation and Marketplace Coordination to recapture MEV for LPs and support longtail assets.
• Arrakis will roll out in three phases, starting with HOT, to eventually become a fully-fledged DVMM.
b) Particle Network
• The fragmentation of crypto hinders dApps adoption by creating a complex user experience and limiting liquidity. Chain abstraction offers a potential solution to these issues by providing a unified ecosystem for dApps to build on.
• However, dApps must also focus on creating compelling value propositions to truly succeed in the market.
c) Thala Labs
• Thala Labs undergoes a complete overhaul of their interface and will revamp their liquidity mining mechanism, with gated access to emissions being deprecated immediately.
Change is in the air, and Thala is getting a brand new look, with updated interfaces, branding, and more
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d) SQD
• FuelVM is taking a different approach to scaling Ethereum - it utilizes UTXO model and a new programming language Sway to achieve parallelization, reduce state bloat and enable native assets.
e) Derivio
• Derivio's Turbo VM is a new type of virtual machine designed for blockchain finance. It offers faster transaction speeds, stronger security, and more flexibility for developers compared to existing VMs like Ethereum's EVM.
• This makes it a promising option for both users and developers in the DeFi space.
f) Glacier Network
• The article discusses the recent developments in AI, including the rise of AI agents, AIGC, LLMs, and RAG. These advancements are transforming the way we interact with technology and shaping the future of AI.
g) Automata Network
• Automata is excited to announce its new OP Stack Chain, a machine attestation layer built on the Superchain. The team is grateful for the support from Optimism, EigenLayer, and AltLayer and is thrilled to finally bring their vision of a machine attestation layer with TEE Coprocessors to life.
• To encourage free attestations on the network, Automata is also introducing Automata Gasdrop for verified machines.
h) Pendle
• The Pendle Print highlights latest developments on the Pendle platform, including the addition of new BTC pools and the upcoming Babylon cap raise.
• It also provides an update on the Bedrock uniBTC exploit and discusses recent trading activity on the platform.
3. Sonic Labs - Ecosystem Coverage and Highlights
Roses are red. Sonic is blue. If you want 10k TPS, Sonic is for you! In view of Sonic’s imminent mainnet upgrade, we’re here to look into what this upgrade brings to Fantom - from a technical and ecosystem-focused perspective.
A blast from the past
Anyone who was in the DeFi space in 2022 would know Fantom as a booming hub for crypto degens. Fantom was one of the top performing ecosystems, together with other chains in the “FOAN ($FTM, $ONE, $ATOM, $NEAR) trade”. Fantom hit a peak of US$8b in Total Value Locked (TVL) in March 2022. Much of Fantom’s success is owed to Andre Cronje, who is widely regarded as the Godfather of DeFi due to his contributions. However, in March 2022, Cronje and his partner, Anton Nell, announced that they “are closing the chapter of contributing to DeFi/crypto.” This was one of the unfortunate events that triggered a decline in the Fantom ecosystem. However, just as hope seemed lost, Cronje returned to the fray as the Chief Technology Officer of Sonic Labs.
Sonic Upgrade
The Sonic upgrade introduces significant improvements to Fantom, which was already providing high throughput. Sonic is expected to handle over ~2,000 Transactions Per Second (TPS) at ~1-second finality, which is a drastic improvement from before. ERC-20 token transfers are also possible at a whopping ~10,000 TPS. This leap in performance is achieved through techniques like super instructions and caching, which allow for more efficient execution of smart contracts. Another critical component of the upgrade is the Carmen database. It features live pruning, which allows validators to discard outdated data without going offline, cutting storage requirements by up to 90%.
These technical improvements serve to scale Sonic’s network, opening up possibilities for the hosting of high-frequency decentralised applications (dApps) as well as the lowering of transaction costs.
Sonic Boom - Sonic Bounty Program
To bootstrap and breathe new life into the Sonic ecosystem, Sonic has introduced SONIC BOOM, a bounty program, featuring Sonic Gems for the 190,500,000 $S airdrop. Sonic Gems are airdrop points that can be earned by users, with 37.5% of the total airdrop allocated to holders of Gems.
More critically, SONIC BOOM is offering 30 winning projects a bounty of Gems for developing and on Sonic. These Gems can be utilised by project teams as incentives to onboard users onto their dApps. Particularly, the SONIC BOOM developer bounty is applicable to projects of several verticals.
Additionally, SONIC BOOM has allocated additional rewards to projects who also incorporate the following, namely by participating in Sonic’s Gas Monetization program, using SAFE’s tools, or by exclusively deploying on Sonic. Devs should refer to Sonic’s announcement for the full set of details, including the application process as well as the application deadlines.
What's cooking in Sonic right now?
Leading the charge towards Sonic’s comeback are the Fantom OGs such as Beethoven and Spookyswap. However, SONIC BOOM hopes to onboard new devs, users and communities for everyone to enjoy the speedy new chain together.
We think that SONIC BOOM presents a great opportunity for developers and users alike. Time will tell if Fantom’s comeback (this time as Sonic) will become a reality. To keep updated with the Sonic ecosystem, feel free to refer to our Sonic Ecosystem twitter list.
Disclaimer: This report is for meant informational purposes only and is not legal, business or investment advice.
