Most apps we call decentralized today… well, aren’t quite there yet. If you’ve got to hop off the app to start using it, that’s more of a fancy frontend than a true dapp. And if diving into the world of dapps means juggling exchanges, accounts, gas fees, and bridges, it begs the question: did we really make an app, or just a maze? It’s no wonder dapps are still a niche, with only a few million global users.
For Web3 to go big, we need to think differently. The space has been chatting about modularity, and how to break down blockchain into layers for scalability. Think layer-twos, sidechains, you name it. But this tech buffet has made the user experience… complicated. Developers feel boxed in, limiting their apps’ reach by sticking to one chain.
Here’s a thought: what if we could make all that complexity invisible to users? Imagine a world where blockchains fade into the background, where using a dapp is as easy as using any app on your phone. That’s the dream of abstraction.
A Day in the Life with Abstraction
Picture this: Leonor wakes up, orders a coffee through an app, and gets a discount at her favorite store. She earns a badge (yep, an NFT) without even knowing it’s on a blockchain. Later, she uses that badge to snag tickets to an exclusive event, inviting her friend Luka. All of this happens in one app, seamlessly. Luka, chilling on the metro, trades some crypto, all within the same app. No fuss about wallets or networks.
Making It Happen
How can we get there? By building apps that tap into a vast market, literally anyone who uses apps, without making them worry about what chain they’re on. It’s like emailing from Gmail to Outlook; users don’t care about the server details. They just want things to work. Blockchain, at its core, is about getting value from Web3: secure assets, economic opportunities, and yes, fun experiences.
The goal is to untangle the knotted Web3 experience, making it as unified and secure as possible. Innovations like Zero Knowledge (ZK) proofs are changing the game, allowing for cross-chain transactions with unprecedented security.
Unified Security and Identity
To make this a reality, we need two things: data availability and decentralized sequencing. The other day at THE BLOCK SAUC3 the panel joked around about having a wallet to rule all wallets. So, imagine having one address that works across all chains, where your assets move freely without manual bridging or swapping. Cool, isn’t it?
The Future is Unified
This vision of “account aggregation” is just around the corner, aiming to let users interact with multichain apps effortlessly. The dream? A Web3 where hopping between apps on different chains is as easy as flipping channels on your TV.
The space is constantly evolving, with projects increasingly focusing on engaging a broader audience, and abstraction promising a simpler, more inclusive Web3. Stay tuned, we’re just getting started.