Chain abstraction is an 'important evolutionary growth' says Particle head of growth

The Block’s editor-in-chief, Tim Copeland, discussed the burgeoning topic of chain abstraction with Ethan, the head of developer relations at Particle; Burnt Banksy, the founder and CEO of Xion; and Vishal Chawla, head of crypto ecosystems at The Block, during the third episode of “The Crypto Beat.” 

Ethan explained that the definition and scope of chain abstraction are still being debated. However, it generally means “the removal of complexity that is associated with most on-chain interaction today, particularly as it relates to multichain.” He noted that complexities around users' relationships to certain blockchains and the need to have gas tokens and balances for each chain are now “essentially removed.” Instead, users can use the apps they want in a manner that mimics Web2, with Ethan calling this “​​a really important evolutionary step for the ecosystem.”

Burnt Banksy echoed these sentiments and said that the core objective of those working on chain abstraction is to make crypto accessible to the average user without needing to know the complexities.” He added that the main goal of those working on abstraction is to bring more users to the space.

Banksy continued that in eight years of working in the crypto space, the current Xion testnet is the first his parents could meaningfully interact with. “I think that there's a lot of promise in that,” Banksy said.

Both guests compared blockchain technology to Web2 infrastructure, noting that most users are unaware of the complex technologies behind popular apps and platforms. Ethan continued that selecting which blockchain to deploy should be a decision made by developers of applications.

“The fact that it's such a large part of the experience today, I think, is a sign of immature technology,” he said.

Burnt Banksy agreed on the importance of abstracting away these technological complexities but said that picking blockchains should be “advanced options” for those who want more choice and control.

“Questions of how much we abstract are honestly less on a technical level but are mostly design decisions,” he added.

When asked when abstraction projects would begin seeing releases and adoption, Ethan said that many are “materializing a lot faster than most people think,” adding that the “general consensus is that a lot of these protocols are going to be releasing full mainnet solutions in Q4, like before the end of this year.”

With talk on the upcoming release of many chain abstraction protocols in Q4 2024, Ethan and Burnt Banksy shared their thoughts on the impact chain abstraction could have in the near term. Ethan said he hoped to see a million users interacting on a day-to-day basis in 2025 and expressed his hope that a "lightbulb moment" would soon occur in the crypto space, similar to what has recently been seen with AI, that could lead to a boom in adoption.

Not to be outdone, Burnt Banksy upped the ante and said he hoped for 45 million users, though he admitted this number was without any basis. Banksy continued to say that he viewed the current crypto space as being capped by the number of users of MetaMask and other wallets.

"Once we can break out of that, and I think chain abstraction is a phenomenal way to break out of that, I think that's really when you see this hypergrowth," Bansky added. 

The full third episode of The Crypto Beat can be watched in full below: