Rethinking Chain Abstraction: A Problem-Based Analytical Framework

The concept of chain abstraction may seem confusing at first glance, but it is actually an important development direction in the Web3 field. This article will start from the basic concepts and attempt to clarify the essence of chain abstraction.

Key Summary:

• Abstraction aims to hide complexity, and the level of abstraction in Web3 is often higher than in Web2.
• Modularity lowers the barrier to building public chains, while chain abstraction includes restructuring the relationships of public chains and improving user/developer experience.
• Cross-chain asset transfer, cross-chain communication, interoperability, and chain abstraction are a set of related concepts, with the core being the coordination of state modifications across different chains.
• Intent-based chain abstraction solutions have become a popular architecture, and multiple component-class products may gradually approach the final form of chain abstraction.
• The industry's discussion and development of chain abstraction has not yet escaped the blind worship of infrastructure. As a practical issue, chain abstraction still requires conditions such as on-chain activity, modular progress, and the influx of new users and developers.
• The future of chain abstraction is not smooth sailing, and it is necessary to consider the impact on long-tail public chains, as well as exploration in non-DeFi fields.

The Essence of Chain Abstraction

Is chain abstraction a real issue? It depends on the specific context. The most compelling viewpoint currently suggests that chain abstraction is the next stage of modularity.

In computer science, abstraction refers to separating high-level operations and concepts from their underlying implementations, with the aim of simplifying understanding by hiding complexity. Chain abstraction, on the other hand, achieves seamless usage of chains by hiding the internal details of each chain.

It is worth noting that the abstraction and modularization in the Web3 environment are more complex than in Web2. While modularization helps address the abstraction issues within a single public chain, the user/developer experience abstraction in a multi-chain landscape is an area that modularization has not fully covered. The proposal of chain abstraction includes a re-architecture of the relationships between public chains.

The urgency of blockchain abstraction as a real-world issue is closely related to the following factors:

• On-chain activity
• Progress of Modular Blockchain
• Barriers to entry for new users and developers

Chain Abstraction and Related Concepts

Chain abstraction is a more abstract concept, not a concrete solution, but rather a guiding principle.

We can view cross-chain, interoperability, and chain abstraction as a spectrum from concrete to abstract. They are a set of related concepts centered around coordinating state modifications across different chains, but in practice, the boundaries are often blurred.

Cross-chain applications and protocols can generally be divided into:

• Cross-chain asset transfer: cross-chain bridge, cross-chain AMM, cross-chain aggregator, etc.
• Cross-chain communication: LayerZero, Wormhole, Cosmos IBC, etc.

Cross-chain communication protocols can handle more complex cross-chain operations. Interoperability protocols go further, involving deeper levels of data processing, consensus, and verification.

The connotation of chain abstraction includes blockchain interoperability, but adds a layer of improving user and developer experience, which is closely related to the recently emerging narrative of intent.

Implementation Methods of Chain Abstraction

Different projects have varying understandings and entry points for blockchain abstraction, which can be roughly divided into two categories:

1. Classical School: Evolved from interoperability protocols, focusing more on developer-side abstraction. Representatives include Cosmos, Polkadot, OP Superchain, Polygon Aggayer, and others.

2. Intent Layer: Combining emerging intent architectures, it focuses more on user-side abstraction. This includes comprehensive solution providers such as Near and Particle Network, as well as component products that focus on solving specific problems like UniswapX, 1inch, and Across Protocol.

Regardless of the route, a safe and fast cross-chain experience and a friendly interaction experience are core design goals.

The Combination of Intent and Chain Abstraction

Intent-based architecture has become a popular approach to product design. The core idea is that users only need to specify the expected outcome without worrying about the implementation process, while complex tasks can be outsourced to third parties. This aligns closely with the user experience improvements sought by chain abstraction.

There are various classification methods for chain abstraction architectures in the market, the most well-known being the CAKE framework proposed by Frontier Research, which divides chain abstraction technology into permission layer, solving layer, and settlement layer.

Specifically:

• Permission Layer: Centered on account abstraction, serving as the entry point for users to express their intentions.
• Solver Layer: Usually refers to an off-chain third-party solver responsible for fulfilling user intentions.
• Settlement Layer: Ensures transaction execution, users receive expected results, and solvers are rewarded.

Near and other comprehensive solution providers hope to integrate these three layers into a unified infrastructure product. Component products represented by cross-chain DeFi protocols, such as Across Protocol, have shown significant advantages in terms of speed and cost.

In the future, many component-based products may gradually build the final form of chain abstraction in a puzzle-like manner.

Reflections on Chain Abstraction

There are still some issues in the industry's understanding and practice of chain abstraction:

1. Over-reliance on infrastructure thinking Interoperability protocol leaders frequently secure large amounts of financing, but the performance of their tokens has been poor, undermining market confidence. In an environment lacking external increments, chain abstraction projects are inevitably seen as "air infrastructure."

2. The Dilemma of Standard Setting The discussion of the ERC-7683 standard reflects that overly grand universal standards may be difficult to implement, thereby exacerbating fragmentation.

3. Questions worth further consideration

• The impact of chain abstraction on new public chains/tail public chains and its adoption difficulty
• The potential impact of off-chain solvers on the DEX ecosystem
• The application prospects of chain abstraction in non-DeFi fields
• Will chain abstraction become a new hotspot or bubble after modularization?