Thread by @zerokn0wledge_

DA is a main bottleneck of blockchain scaling

off-chain DA & #Celestia's DA layer address this, while (proto-)danksharding aims to scale $ETH DA

but what if I told you danksharding could already be implemented as middleware secured by $ETH validators?!

ALPHA 🧵 on @eigenlayer

1/ first of all, let's quickly recap the whole DA (= data availability) issue

you can find an introduction to the DA problem and an overview of the current DA landscape here (which also covers off-chain DA):

https://twitter.com/expctchaos/status/1535698402939265025

2/ secondly, if you're not familiar with @CelestiaOrg's DA layer, check out the thread below:

https://twitter.com/expctchaos/status/1535970188012572672

3/ last but not least, $ETH's EIP-4844 (a.k.a. proto-danksharding) and full danksharding implementation are covered here:

https://twitter.com/expctchaos/status/1532100096111824901

4/ but I promised you ALPHA on @eigenlayer, so let's get to it!

what is @eigenlayer?

@eigenlayer is a series of smart contracts on $ETH allowing users to re-stake liquid $ETH staking derivs. It is a mechanism to leverage the existing trust network to do stuff it wasn't meant to

5/ but let me try to make a few examples so that it becomes more clear what I mean by this

6/ when interacting with protocols (e.g. a DEX on $ETH), users have to not only trust $ETH and the DEX they use, but also a number of other protocols that the DEX (or potentially the chain) interfaces with

7/ from a user perspective, this can for example mean:

- trusting oracles for price feed

- trusting bridges for cross-chain transfer

- trusting relayers for MEV Boost

- trusting a DA provider (single provider, committee or DA layer) if user is on a Validium/DAC or Celestium

8/ ok so good so far. but where does @eigenlayer enter the picture here?

well, all the above mentioned cases are examples of users having to trust a middleware service that's not secured by the $ETH validator set, outside ecosystem security & potentially a source of risk

9/ but what if instead of having the middleware secured independently, there was a way to leverage the existing trust network ($ETH validator set) to do that?

10/ sounds familiar?

"mechanism to leverage the existing trust network to do stuff it wasn't meant to"

you're right, it's exactly what @eigenlayer does (see definition earlier)

11/ through re-staking, @eigenlayer let's stakers expose their staked $ETH ($stETH or $rETH) to additional slashing conditions in exchange for securing middleware, thereby leveraging the existing $ETH validator for security/trust

12/ but why do I bring up @eigenlayer in the context of DA?

well, if you read carefully you might remember that middleware can also refer to a DA solution, for example in the case of a Validium or Celestium

13/ that means the user of the #Validium or #Celestium has to trust the centralized DA provider or decentralized DA layer's (independent) validator set to consistently ensure DA

14/ but what if instead of having to trust an external off-chain DA source or another chain, we could use the existing $ETH validator to secure a DA middleware layer?

well, I think at this point you get where I'm going with this

15/ so, let me quickly introduce you to #EigenDA, which is doing exactly what I just described. It's a DA network for rollups and allows $ETH to offload its DA within ecosystem security instead of going off-chain

16/ unlike #Celestia or #PolygonAvail, #EigenDA wouldn't have to bootstrap a new validator set

however, $ETH validators can freely choose to secure middleware or not

so, to achieve high security guarantees, a middleware service has to convince a lot of $ETH validators (rewards)

17/ since #EigenDA literally only is a DA layer (even conseus stripped off), it has a much higher throughput than Celestia (1.4MB/s, source: @MessariCrypto)

#EigenDA is said to achieve up to 15MB/s, which is 176 times more than the DA rate of $ETH without #danksharding

18/ using similar technology to $ETH's danksharding implemtation to ensure DA (e.g. data availability sampling), #EigenDA is a great battle-test for danksharding before it goes live

or will it even make #danksharding obsolete?

we will see

19/ in any case, I'm super excited about @eigenlayer and think it deserves much more attention than it currently gets

for more information, check out the links below 👇

20/ @apolynya on #DataLayr a.k.a. #EigenDA

https://twitter.com/apolynya/status/1517137593531437058

21/ a more detailed thread on @eigenlayer by @_nishil_ that has also provided some inspiration for my thread here

https://twitter.com/_nishil_/status/1573018197829115905

22/ thread on @eigenlayer by founder @sreeramkannan

https://twitter.com/sreeramkannan/status/1595863276101177344

23/ @sreeramkannan's take on hyperscaling DA on #Ethereum

https://twitter.com/sreeramkannan/status/1551638882998841344

24/ for a deep dive into rollups & the modular design space, check out my thread from yesterday

https://twitter.com/expctchaos/status/1601534426592071681

if you liked this thread, please support by retweeting the first post (linked below) 🙏🤝

https://twitter.com/expctchaos/status/1601921935662731265

have a great Sunday frens!✨