The much-awaited Ethereum Layer 2 network zkSync is ready to go live on mainnet on Oct 28. The entire crypto community has set its eye on how Ethereum will scale and which technologies will be the most successful.
After the long wait of four years, zkSync is finally approaching a pivotal moment for Ethereum. It’s the first time zkSync’s novel scaling will be stress-tested in a live environment. ZkSync is a complicated technology with terms like “zkEVM” making it even more challenging to understand.
To learn what makes zkSync different from other Ethereum scaling solutions, we must define what zkSync actually is. In simple words, zkSync is a novel approach to fixing Ethereum’s scaling shortcomings. This is the first time when this technology will be used in a way that’s natively compatible with Ethereum applications.
Basically, zkSync will offer much cheaper and faster transactions on the Ethereum blockchain while also being home to several popular Ethereum apps. If successful, decentralized exchanges and DeFi protocols can shift to the zkSync layer which will ultimately let crypto users access these tools at a lower cost.
zkSync also aims to provide an alternative to the current Layer 2 options such as Arbitrum and Optimism. Matter Labs, the team behind zkSync announced that zkSync 2.0 will be launched to mainnet. Finally, zkSync is here to be the first zkEVM to launch its mainnet.
Currently, zkSync is running on a testnet and soon users will be able to interact with the platform ahead of the mainnet launch. The mainnet launch is broken down into several stages namely Baby Alpha stage, Fair launch alpha, and Full Alpha.
The first stage will take place on October 28 while other stages are scheduled for later this year. Upon launch, zkSync will make transactions 10x to 20x faster and cheaper via the main Ethereum blockchain.
