Ethereum Title Service (ENS) Labs, the corporate behind the ENS area title protocol, proposed Tuesday to undergo an entire architectural redesign that may flip the community right into a layer-2 blockchain.
The proposal, dubbed “ENSv2,” will overhaul the undertaking’s registry system as a part of the transformation right into a layer 2, which is an auxiliary community that gives cheaper transaction charges that may then be settled to the bottom blockchain, Ethereum.
ENS Labs Government Director Khori Whittaker stated in an interview with CoinDesk that the undertaking was leaning towards utilizing know-how from the layer-2 chain-development equipment ZK Stack from Matter Labs, which additionally was the first developer behind the layer 2 zkSync.
The brand new initiative by ENS follows a brand new blockchain development, the place some protocols atop Ethereum and even some different layer-1 blockchains are migrating to grow to be layer-2 networks, to deal with wants of their communities, corresponding to the need for cheaper charges or customization. Earlier this month, the layer-1 chain Celo concluded an 8 month search for its new layer-2 residence, selecting Optimism’s know-how to assist propel them.
“I need us to get the gasoline worth as near zero as doable,” stated Whittaker. “So I am enthusiastic about tons of exercise utilizing ENS names and ENS profiles.”
ENS, based in 2017 by former Ethereum Basis workers Nick Johnson and Alex Van de Sande, is designed to map cryptocurrency addresses – sometimes consisting of lengthy strings of letters and phrases – to human-readable names like “Alice.eth.” In its present configuration, the protocol exists merely as good contracts atop Ethereum.
The crew spent a while taking a look at layer-2 applied sciences from Arbitrum, Optimism and zkSync earlier than selecting Matter Labs’ ZK Stack, Whittaker informed CoinDesk. ZK Stack is a customizable software program toolkit that lets builders spin up their very own chains primarily based on zkSync’s know-how. A key part of the ZK stack is that it makes use of zero-knowledge proofs, a kind of cryptography that is certainly one of hottest developments in blockchain.
Whereas assessing which stack to select, privateness and safety had been on the high of the record, Whittaker stated.
“From my perspective, that is what I am trying on the varied L2 stacks,” Whittaker stated.
With the discharge of the proposal, the ENS DAO – the decentralized governing physique behind the ENS protocol – will vote on whether or not it approves the adjustments, kicking off a interval of back-and-forth dialogue.
“That’ll in all probability take two months or so for that entire course of to go, after which as soon as we’re all aligned and we get the thumbs up, then we’re off to the races to construct,” Whittaker stated.
