Justin Drake of the Ethereum Foundation said that the Based solution is the ultimate goal of Ethereum expansion.
Original text: [Opinion] Decentralizing Rollups: A Neglected Priority in Rollups
Author: Heechang, Ingeun Kim, Four Pillars
Compiled by: Luffy, Foresight News
Cover: Photo by Shubham Dhage on Unsplash
Decentralization is the core value of blockchain. However, in order to enhance the scalability of Ethereum, Rollup sacrifices some decentralization. For Optimistic Rollup and ZK Rollup, full decentralization mainly faces challenges in ordering and proof of settlement.
Despite these challenges, the good news is that Rollup is accelerating towards decentralization. Some Optimistic Rollups have introduced permissionless challenge mechanisms and are testing hybrid proof systems. One of the most prominent players in this decentralized movement is Taiko, which has a clear decentralized roadmap. Let’s take a look.
1. Taiko’s decentralization approach: BCR and BBR framework
Taiko introduced two proof frameworks in the article "The Road to Decentralized Rollup": Based Contestable Rollup (BCR) and Based Booster Rollup (BBR). Let's take a brief look at them.
1.1 Based Contestable Rollup (BCR): A powerful L2 proof system
BCR is a Rollup design that integrates a dispute mechanism. This design allows participants to question the validity of transaction results and verify transactions when they suspect fraud. It allows Ethereum validators to sort transactions without a central sorter and use a dispute mechanism to maintain the integrity of the blockchain, thereby enhancing decentralization.
The BCR mechanism combines the advantages of Ethereum transaction ordering with this controversial feature, aiming to reduce transaction fees while maintaining security and decentralization.
In addition, Taiko adopts a multi-protection system in BCR, allowing the use of different Rollup proof systems (SGX, ZK, SGX+ZK, etc.) according to the stage, thus ensuring system flexibility and stability.
Although BCR is a powerful proof system, it also has a disadvantage: when the competition frequency is low, there is a lack of activity among provers. Provers need a lot of competition to generate profits, so when competition is insufficient, it may be better for them not to participate. To prevent this problem, Taiko dynamically adjusts different Rollup proof systems.
1.2 Based Booster Rollup (BBR)
BBR is designed to scale Ethereum ecosystem DApps without having to redeploy on all L2s. It does this by sharding transaction execution and storage, minimizing developer workload and reducing redeployment costs. This design aims to solve the liquidity fragmentation problem between L2s and enhance network scalability.
In November 2023, Taiko launched Gwyneth, a Booster Rollup designed to enhance the functionality of Ethereum. Gwyneth uses Ethereum L1 validators for transaction ordering and L1 builders for block construction. Its main features include synchronous composability for seamless L1 integration, scalability to meet growing demand, and pre-confirmation capabilities for fast transactions.
Gwyneth has “inherent finality,” is secured by Taiko’s multi-proof system Raiko, uses a trusted execution environment (TEE), and plans to incorporate ZKVM in the future.
Both BCR and BBR are part of Taiko’s efforts to provide an efficient scaling solution for Ethereum, ensuring that the network remains secure and decentralized while handling high transaction volumes.
2. Our opinion
2.1 Heechang of Four Pillars: “Are we considering decentralization in Rollup?”
Currently, most Rollups are centralized, but decentralized sorting and proof systems are being promoted. The two more well-known proof systems, Optimistic Rollups and ZK Rollups, are moving towards decentralization.
Optimistic Proof Systems: These systems have implemented mandatory L1 transactions and are exploring shared ordering and permissionless challenge mechanisms. Arbitrum and Optimism allow permissionless challenges, but Optimism recently disabled this feature due to a suspected bug.
ZK Proof System: Most ZK Rollups do not allow for forced transactions in L1. While ZK provides secure state change guarantees, operations are currently centralized and there are still significant technical challenges.
Although the degree of decentralization is not perfect, Rollup frameworks such as OP Stack, ZK Stack, Polygon ZKEVM, and Arbitrum Orbit are currently used by hundreds of L2s. This trend continues, and Rollup framework teams are working hard to achieve decentralization. However, not all projects have a clear decentralization roadmap.
Taiko stands out in this regard. From the beginning, it has a clear roadmap to become an L2 and decentralized Rollup framework. Taiko's token economics provides sustainable utility for its tokens, which is lacking in most other L2 tokens.
Can Taiko successfully realize its vision at the right market timing? As other projects are also improving their codebases and infrastructure, only time will tell. Taiko is one of the teams working closely with the Ethereum Foundation, so it will be crucial to track Taiko’s development progress, especially in terms of decentralization.
2.2 Ingeun Kim of Four Pillars: “It’s time to think about the decentralization of Rollup”
Currently, all major Rollup projects are working hard to achieve the decentralization of Rollup, but none of them have made significant progress in achieving complete decentralization. The main reason is that most of the current mainstream Rollups have given decentralization a lower priority at the beginning of their design. These Rollups have focused on performance and functionality from the beginning, but now find that it is extremely difficult to incorporate the concept of decentralization into their strictly restricted designs. This is understandable because in the early days, Rollup needed to provide immediate results with high-speed performance to meet the scalability requirements of Ethereum.
However, the decentralization of Rollup is becoming increasingly important now. This is similar to the natural transition from the centralized, performance-driven Web2 era to the decentralized Web3 era. Fortunately, many Rollup projects have laid the foundation and paved the way for the move toward decentralization. In this context, Taiko's attempt to decentralize Rollup is worth paying attention to. Especially the BCR mechanism, Taiko's Rollup is designed with the basic elements of complete decentralization, including low participation barriers, and fair rewards and penalties.
Of course, Taiko still has a lot of room for improvement, and the road to full decentralization is full of challenges. However, Taiko's efforts are significant and may have a positive impact on the entire Ethereum L2 ecosystem. Their progress is worth paying attention to.
3. Other Views
3.1 Taiko’s Junger: “Choosing Based Rollup is not just a technical decision, but more importantly it is about decentralization”
Junger asserts that as Rollups become more popular, fragmentation will become a major issue. Choosing between Based Rollups and shared sorters requires trade-offs. Shared sorters provide fast finality and cross-chain composability, but introduce new trust assumptions and potential points of failure. Based Rollups leverage Ethereum's infrastructure, provide liquidity and L1 composability, but face transaction time and revenue challenges.
Future improvements may include Based Pre-Confirmations and faster L1 block times to enhance user experience while maintaining Ethereum consistency.
Junger emphasized that the Based solution is not just a technical decision, but also a question about the direction of the decentralized Rollup "framework".
3.2 Justin Drake of the Ethereum Foundation: “Based is the end of scaling”
Justin Drake, a researcher at the Ethereum Foundation, has been actively involved in discussions about Ethereum scaling solutions, with a particular focus on Based Rollup and Taiko. Drake emphasized the importance of decentralized ordering, which can alleviate issues such as control over transaction ordering and censorship. He believes that the integration of technologies such as zero-knowledge proofs and shared sorters can enhance the functionality and security of Based Rollup.
Justin Drake believes that with permissionless sorting and proof, Taiko is an important step towards a decentralized and scalable Ethereum ecosystem. He also said that Based is the end game for scaling.
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