Espresso, Project for Composability Between Blockchains, Pushes Main Product Live

Espresso,
a
closely
watched
blockchain
project
to
coordinate
cross-chain
transactions
and
interactions,
shared
Monday
that
its
main
product,
known
as
the
confirmation
layer,
has
gone
live.

According
to
the
team,
the
confirmation
layer
will
be
a
critical
piece
of
infrastructure
for
composability
among
rollups,
allowing
for
two
networks
to
read
and
trust
each
other’s
blocks
of
transaction
data.
A
rollup
is
a
type
of
auxiliary,
or
“layer-2,”
network
atop
a
main
blockchain,
providing
a
venue
for
cheaper
and
faster
transactions.

Specific
benefits
of
Espresso’s
new
confirmation
layer
could
include
faster
bridging
of
assets
between
networks,
decentralizing
a
key
component
of
layer-2
blockchains
known
as
the
“sequencer,”
and
providing
a
way
for
networks
to
stash
reams
of
transactional
data
at
a
low
cost,
according
to
the

project
documentation.

“It’s
literally
a
protocol
that
a
rollup
sequencer
publishes
its
blocks
to,
and
once
published
on
the
confirmation
layer,
they
can’t
be
changed,
even
when
that
chain
later
settles
to
Ethereum,”
Ben
Fisch,
CEO
of
Espresso
Systems,
said
in
an
interview
with
CoinDesk.

Essentially,
this
takes
on
the
role
of
a
sequencer
today,
and
adds
some
security
to
it.
Sequencers
are

a
crucial
piece
of
infrastructure
in
rollups,
bundling
up
transactions
from
users
of
the
layer
2
so
they
can
be
recorded
on
the
layer
1,
in
this
case
Ethereum.

“Optimism,
for
example,
takes
seven
days
to
settle
on
Ethereum,”
Fisch
said.
“The
confirmation
layer
enforces
that
whatever
was
published
to
the
confirmation
layer
has
to
be
what
is
eventually
published
and
settled
on
the
L1.
And
that
means
that
any
node
that’s
reading
from
the
confirmation
layer’s
published
blocks,
can
just
execute
them
and
know
exactly
what
the
state
of
the
rollup
is.”

The
issue
with
sequencers
is
that
they
are

typically
run
by
centralized
entities,
and
pose
as
a
single
point
of
failure.

“As
long
as
that
sequencer
is
honest
and
doesn’t
get
hacked
or
compromised,
you
can
just
confirm
your
transactions.
That’s
actually
how
people
use
it
primarily
today
–
it
just
creates
a
massive
security
risk.”
Fisch
said.
“So
while
users
of
the
chain
rely
on
it,
bridge
protocols
and
applications
on
other
chains
can’t.
The
more
you
create
cross-chain
dependencies
on
what
a
sequencer
says,
the
more
money
a
hacker
can
compromise.”

Not
only
does
the
confirmation
layer
add
an
extra
level
of
security,
but
it
also
enables
faster
and
cheaper
bridging,
according
to
the
Espresso
team.
The
composability
of
the
confirmation
layer
creates
interdependencies
between
rollups,
allowing
nodes
to
read
the
data
and
state
of
other
rollups
quickly,
a
press
release
stated.

Over
time,
the
confirmation
layer
will
begin
to
integrate
with
some
of
the
major
rollups
in
the
layer-2
space,
like
Arbitrum’s
nitro
stack,
Optimism’s
OP
stack
and
Polygon’s
chain
development
kit.

In
March,
Espresso

raised
$28
million
in
funds
to
contribute
to
its
products
and
help
with
research.
The
series
B
round
was
led
by
venture
capital
giant
Andreessen
Horowitz’s
a16z
Crypto
and
saw
participation
from
many
of
the
developer
firms
behind
the
leading
layer-2
rollups
like
Arbitrum,
Starknet
and
Polygon.

In
addition
to
the
confirmation
layer,
Espresso
moving
forward
will
focus
its
research
and
development
in
the
field
of
composability
and
sequencing.

Read
more:



Espresso
Systems
Raises
$28M
in
Fresh
Funds,
Led
By
A16z
Crypto