From: thepipeline_xyz
The blockchain industry, historically marked by intense competition, is increasingly recognizing the vital role of collaboration to drive mass adoption and solve pressing technical challenges [08:06:06]. This shift is particularly evident among projects focusing on improving blockchain performance and scalability, where a collective effort is seen as key to unlocking new use cases and reaching a broader user base [02:00:00].
Moving Beyond Tribalism
In the past, the blockchain space was characterized by “Twitter Wars” and fierce competition between different Layer 1s (L1s), data availability (DA) layers, and settlement layers [15:00:00]. However, a growing consensus is emerging that this tribalism is counterproductive [16:39:41].
“Everyone’s really tired of fighting with each other… it helped no one for like Ethereum and Solana to be at each other’s throats… it’s just like net not good for the space so like why don’t we make another approach where like we’re just friendly and curious about each other’s things and we’re learning from one another, we’re collaborating.” [16:34:00] - Kevin G, Monad
This sentiment reflects a maturation of the industry, where projects are recognizing that the shared goal of onboarding more users to Web3 transcends individual rivalries [08:13:15].
Reasons for Increased Collaboration
Shared Vision for Performance and Scale
The primary goal for many leading blockchain projects is to make blockchains more performant [01:53:00]. Current infrastructure, particularly the older Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM), is often described as slow, clunky, and prone to high gas fees during peak demand [01:13:00]. For instance, when applications like GMX experience high volumes, Arbitrum’s gas fees can become unusable [09:37:00].
The collective understanding is that “every blockchain today would break immediately” if it had the user base of a successful Web2 application like Instagram or Facebook [11:07:00]. This shared challenge necessitates collaborative efforts to achieve the required scale [08:31:00].
Leveraging Existing Research and Innovation
Collaboration in blockchain often involves integrating diverse technologies and drawing inspiration from prior research [12:12:00]. For example, Movement Labs combines the Move Virtual Machine (VM) (originally developed by Facebook’s Diem project) [01:27:00] with Ethereum’s security, Celestia for data availability, and Snow consensus for a decentralized sequencer set [03:56:00]. This “mashup” of technologies demonstrates an approach to building a robust ecosystem by leveraging existing, proven components [05:50:00].
Similarly, Monad’s commitment to full EVM bytecode compatibility allows it to benefit from the extensive research in ZK proofs, rollups, and other advancements centered around the EVM [31:17:17].
Developer Accessibility and Interoperability
A key aspect of collaboration involves making new technologies accessible to existing developer communities. Movement Labs developed “Fractal,” a transpiler that allows Solidity code to be mapped to Move opcodes, enabling EVM developers to build on a Move-based chain without learning a new programming language [23:39:00]. This removes a significant barrier to adoption and leverages the existing pool of Solidity developers [07:33:00].
Monad, by maintaining actual EVM compatibility, aims to expand the market for EVM developers, allowing them to deploy on a high-performance L1 without significant code changes [29:49:00]. This approach fosters interoperability at the developer experience level.
Benefits of Collaboration
Accelerating Progress
The collaborative mindset helps to accelerate the overall progress of the blockchain space. Instead of isolated development, projects can learn from each other’s designs, contribute back to shared standards (like EIPs), and collectively address fundamental challenges like scalability and security [17:11:00].
Growing the “Pie”
A recurring theme is the desire to “grow the pie” rather than fight over existing pieces [32:27:00]. By enabling more use cases, making the technology more performant, and enhancing security, the entire ecosystem benefits. This is crucial for onboarding a wider range of users, including those new to crypto who may be put off by complex transactions or security risks [24:17:00].
Unlocking New Use Cases
With improved infrastructure driven by collaborative efforts, new and impactful use cases become viable. Payments are poised for disruption, allowing for efficient cross-border transactions without high fees [35:54:00]. Retail trading on-chain is also becoming more feasible with lower slippage and consistent gas fees [37:19:19]. Even gaming, a sector with immense potential, benefits from robust infrastructure that can handle asset and state tracking on-chain [37:50:00].
The Role of Community
Beyond technical collaboration, the role of community and a shift in tribalism is crucial. The breaking down of “tribalism” means that core Ethereum developers are starting to acknowledge and discuss other VMs and DA layers, fostering a more cohesive and productive environment [41:52:00]. This collaborative spirit among different blockchain communities is seen as a positive development, allowing for “useful minds” to work together instead of competing for a small user base [42:25:00].
While challenges remain and a future bull market might reignite some competitive instincts [18:13:00], the current focus on collaboration among blockchain projects represents a significant step towards a more mature and scalable industry capable of serving a global user base [33:05:07].