The Edge Podcast - Particle Network

In this episode of The Edge Podcast, which took place on August 29, 2024, DeFi Dad and Nomatic hosted Tabasco aka Ethan from Particle Network to discuss Particle Network’s approach to simplifying Web3 onboarding, the evolution of universal accounts, the impact of chain abstraction on the crypto ecosystem, and more! Read our notes below to learn more.

Background

DeFi Dad (Host) – Host of Edge Podcast

Nomatic (Host) – Co-Host of Edge Podcast

Tabasco (Guest) – head of developer relations at Particle Network

Particle Network – a comprehensive development platform that aims to make the transition from Web2 to Web3 smoother and more efficient for developers

Tabasco’s Journey in Web3 and Particle Network’s Mission to Simplify Crypto Onboarding

DeFi Dad explains that they will explore how Particle Network is working to simplify the crypto user experience by unifying access to all blockchains through universal accounts. This sets the stage for a deep dive into the concept of chain abstraction and its potential impact on the crypto ecosystem.
Tabasco talks about his crypto journey at the young age of 15, initially drawn in by the surge in Dogecoin’s price. This sparked his interest in making money to buy video game skins, leading him to start mining Dogecoin and later Bitcoin. As he delved deeper into the crypto community, Tabasco quickly realized that trading wasn’t his strong suit. Instead, he became fascinated by the underlying blockchain technology.
At around 15 and a half, Tabasco reignited his passion for programming, focusing on languages like Python. This led to the creation of his first project, Amity DeFi, when he was still 15. Amity DeFi was designed to bring wallet interactions and on-chain experiences directly to Discord communities, particularly gaining traction within the Harmony ecosystem.
After about a year of building Amity DeFi, Tabasco decided to pursue a career in Web3. At 16, he transitioned from working at a local tire shop to securing a full-time position in developer relations at an RPC provider. This marked the beginning of his professional journey in the crypto space, which eventually led him to join Particle Network in September of the previous year, at the age of 17.
Tabasco talks about how Particle Network’s primary focus has always been on improving the user experience in Web3. They recognized early on that the complexity of traditional crypto onboarding processes, such as generating seed phrases and managing multiple wallets, was a significant barrier to mainstream adoption.
To address this, Particle Network started as a wallet-as-a-service provider, introducing social logins as a way to simplify the onboarding process. This allowed users to create and access Web3 wallets using familiar accounts like Google, Twitter, or email, eliminating the need for separate wallet applications like MetaMask.
Tabasco explains that this approach gained significant traction, with around 900 applications integrating their social login product. However, they soon realized that simplifying the initial onboarding was just the first step in improving the overall Web3 user experience.

Particle Network’s Evolution: Simplifying Web3 with Account and Chain Abstraction for Seamless Crypto Experiences

Tabasco explains Particle Network evolved their product to incorporate account abstraction. This advancement enabled features like gasless transactions, session keys to eliminate transaction pop-ups, social recovery options, and programmable wallets. The goal was to create a Web3 experience that felt as seamless and user-friendly as Web2 applications, where users could interact with blockchain technology without needing to understand its complexities.
Despite these improvements, Tabasco and the team at Particle Network identified a larger, underlying issue: while they had significantly enhanced the application-level user experience, the ecosystem-level experience in crypto remained fragmented and challenging for average users.
This realization led to their current focus on chain abstraction, manifested in their development of Universal Accounts. Tabasco describes this as an evolution of account abstraction, aiming to provide users with a single, unified balance usable across multiple blockchain networks.
He illustrates this concept with an example: a user could have 10 $USDC each on Polygon, Avalanche, and Arbitrum, but with Universal Accounts, they would see and be able to use a total balance of 30 $USDC anywhere, without needing to distinguish between different chains or manage separate wallets for each network.
This approach represents a significant step towards simplifying the crypto user experience at the ecosystem level. By abstracting away the complexities of different blockchain networks, Particle Network aims to create a more intuitive and accessible crypto ecosystem, potentially paving the way for broader adoption and more seamless interaction with decentralized applications across various chains.

Exploring Chain Abstraction in Web3: Simplifying User Experience Across Multiple Blockchains

Tabasco explains chain abstraction as a user experience exempt from manual processes required to interact with multiple chains. It eliminates the need for users to manage bridging, multiple balances on different chains, or multiple wallets. The goal is to allow users to focus solely on using applications without needing to understand or manage the underlying chains.
Tabasco elaborates on the current user experience in Web3: Users currently have relationships with both applications and the chains those applications use. Chain abstraction aims to remove the need for users to have a relationship with or understanding of the chains. It shifts the ecosystem from a collection of applications sorted by chains to just an ecosystem of applications.
Tabasco provides an example of how chain abstraction would work: A user earning yield on an application on Base could use their balance or profits anywhere else, like on Avalanche or Arbitrum, without needing to understand the bridging process. To end users, every application would be on a level playing field, regardless of the underlying chain.
Nomatic comments on the current state of crypto, noting that users have to make too many technical decisions. He asks Tabasco about the landscape of chain abstraction players and where Particle Network fits in.
Tabasco explains the frameworks used to understand chain abstraction: The CAKE Framework helps understand the technologies that compose chain abstraction. The Multi-layer Framework, developed by Particle, acknowledges that chain abstraction requires multiple layers of solutions addressing different parts of the problem.
Tabasco then breaks down the three key layers of the Multi-layer Framework:
- Application Layer Chain Abstraction:
  - Geared towards developers, Allows creation of applications that compose across any chain and enables chain-agnostic applications, Examples include Agoric, Socket, Okta, and Clusters
- Account Level Chain Abstraction:
  - User-facing implementation, Focuses on enabling chain abstraction for end-users through their accounts, Allows users to have a single balance and identity across all chains, Particle Network fits here with their Universal Accounts, Other players include Orb Labs, Arcana, and Xion
- Blockchain Level Chain Abstraction:
  - Refers to collectives of chains that are intrinsically interoperable and share liquidity, Examples include Polygon Ag Layer, Optimism Superchain, ZKsync Elastic Chain, and Avail Nexus
Tabasco highlights that these three layers collectively enable a full chain abstracted experience, creating flexibility and removing the need for users to focus on underlying chains.

Addressing Crypto Ecosystem Fragmentation: Chain Abstraction and the Infrastructure Fatigue

Nomatic asks Tabasco how he would respond to cynics who view chain abstraction as just another VC-driven narrative, and why people should care about it in light of this context.
Tabasco says that chain abstraction has indeed become a buzzword in the crypto space, often overused and applied too broadly. He says that beneath the hype, chain abstraction is addressing a fundamental and growing problem in the crypto ecosystem.
Tabasco differentiates chain abstraction from other crypto narratives. While many narratives promise revolutionary changes or massive performance improvements, chain abstraction is primarily a solution to an existing and worsening problem: ecosystem fragmentation. He highlights that it’s not introducing a completely new technology, but rather addressing a challenge that has evolved alongside the growth of the crypto space.
Tabasco talks about the evolution of the fragmentation problem. Initially, the crypto space was dominated by the idea that a single blockchain would eventually emerge as the primary platform for all applications. However, this vision has shifted dramatically, especially within the Ethereum ecosystem.
The new paradigm embraces a multi-chain future, with concepts like rollups and AppChains gaining prominence. This shift towards modularity and specialization has exacerbated the fragmentation issue, as users now need to navigate an increasingly complex landscape of different chains for different applications.
Tabasco says that this fragmentation problem is set to worsen significantly in the near future. He paints a picture of a potential future with thousands of AppChains or rollups, each optimized for specific use cases.
While this approach offers benefits in terms of scalability and specialization, it presents a major challenge for user experience. Without chain abstraction, users would need to manage multiple wallets, constantly bridge assets, and navigate a bewildering array of different chains just to use various applications.
Tabasco explains this is where chain abstraction becomes crucial. It acts as the “glue” that can hold this fragmented ecosystem together from a user experience perspective. By abstracting away the complexities of interacting with multiple chains, it allows the benefits of a modular, multi-chain ecosystem to be realized without sacrificing usability.
Tabasco then addresses the broader sentiment of infrastructure fatigue in the crypto community. He acknowledges the frustration many feel with the seemingly endless focus on infrastructure development at the expense of actual applications.
He says that the lack of high-quality, innovative applications is not primarily due to an excess of infrastructure, but rather a misalignment of incentives for developers.

Incentive Structures and Fragmentation in Crypto Application Development

Tabasco outlines two main incentive structures currently driving developer behavior:
- The creation of simple, easily replicable applications that can be deployed across multiple chains with minimal effort. These “lazy” applications, often forks of existing protocols, capitalize on the convenience factor for users who are already active on a particular chain.
- The development of applications that focus on dominating a single ecosystem. Developers might create a slightly modified version of an existing application (like a DEX) and aim to capture the market on a specific chain.
Tabasco says that these incentives lead to a suboptimal situation where developers are rewarded for prioritizing convenience and quick deployment over true innovation. Users tend to stick with whatever applications are readily available on their preferred chains, rather than seeking out the most innovative or highest-quality options.
The ecosystem becomes siloed, with applications on different chains not truly competing with each other, as users are unlikely to bridge assets just to use a marginally better application on another chain.
Tabasco says this situation discourages the development of truly groundbreaking applications. Developers are incentivized to cater to the current state of the ecosystem – fragmented and siloed – rather than pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in decentralized applications.
By addressing these incentive structures and reducing fragmentation, chain abstraction has the potential to fundamentally alter the landscape of crypto application development, potentially paving the way for more innovative and user-centric applications in the future.

Transforming the Blockchain Ecosystem: Chain Abstraction and Market Innovation

Tabasco says that the current fragmented landscape leads to the development of “half-baked, not very innovative solutions” because developers are incentivized to either create lazy applications across multiple chains or focus on dominating a single ecosystem. This situation arises from having around 200 siloed user bases and about 20,000 developers in the space.
Tabasco highlights that simply calling for more applications won’t solve the problem. He presents his vision of how chain abstraction could dramatically shift the market landscape:
- User Base Transformation: Chain abstraction will eliminate siloed user bases. Users will become “universalized” and chain-agnostic, no longer bound to specific ecosystems.
- Expanded Competition: Developers will no longer compete only within a single ecosystem. Instead, they’ll face competition from every relevant application across the entire industry.
- Shift in User Behavior: Users will choose applications based on quality and best use cases rather than convenience or availability within a specific chain.
- Developer Incentives: This new landscape will force developers to create truly innovative and competitive applications or risk becoming obsolete. The “cookie swap” example he used earlier would no longer be viable in this environment.
- Quality-Driven Market: Applications will need to “adapt or die” to fit this new market narrative, leading to higher quality, more innovative, and user-centric applications.
Tabasco says that this shift in incentives will finally address the industry’s need for better applications. He believes that chain abstraction will align incentives in a way that makes it practical and necessary for developers to focus on creative and innovative use cases.
He contrasts this with the current situation where creating truly innovative applications (like Puffer Finance or Polymarket) is a “tall order” with limited financial incentives unless the application is genuinely groundbreaking.
Tabasco predicts that these changes will lead to more consumer adoption due to the availability of higher-quality applications. Developers creating applications that better leverage blockchain technology.

Exploring Chain Abstraction and Security in Decentralized Networks

Nomatic asks Tabasco about potential new applications or use cases that this shift could enable, seeking concrete examples of what could be built in this new landscape.
Tabasco suggests that nearly every existing application in the crypto space can be reimagined through the lens of chain abstraction. This is because applications will need to adapt to fit into a chain-agnostic future.
He expresses excitement about the emergence of truly chain-agnostic applications. These applications will easily exist and operate across multiple chains, enabled by application-level chain abstraction solutions or orchestration.
Tabasco provides an example of how chain abstraction could simplify complex DeFi operations. He describes a scenario where a user wants to earn the best yield on their $USDC, which might involve staking $TIA on a Cosmos AppChain. Currently, this process is complicated and time-consuming. With chain abstraction, users could perform such complex, multi-chain operations with a single click, without needing to understand the underlying processes.
He highlights that chain abstraction won’t eliminate the unique value propositions of individual chains. Instead, it will allow applications to optimize and capture value from multiple chains simultaneously, creating more efficient and user-friendly experiences.
DeFi Dad asks Tabasco about trust and consensus in Particle Network:
Tabasco explains Particle Network’s approach to security and decentralization:
- Decentralized Coordination: instead of using a centralized server, Particle Network uses a Cosmos AppChain (L1) for decentralized coordination of universal accounts.
- Validation Process: All operations with universal accounts go through a decentralized validation process and are settled on their chain, eliminating the need to trust a centralized entity.
- Dual Consensus Mechanism: Particle Network employs two validator sets to enhance security:
  - a) A set of about 25 large validators, including many Cosmos validators, secured by Particle’s native token.
  - b) A second validator set secured by Bitcoin, using Babylon’s technology.
- Addressing Volatility: The dual validator approach helps mitigate risks associated with the potential volatility of Particle’s native token, especially at launch.
- Focus on Decentralization: Tabasco highlights that this design was chosen specifically to ensure that universal accounts are as distributed and decentralized as possible, without relying on a single entity for security.
He says that their blockchain’s primary purpose is to provide a secure, resilient, and decentralized foundation for universal accounts, eliminating single points of failure in the system.

Particle Network Mainnet Update: Timeline, Onboarding, and User Experience Enhancements

DeFi Dad asks about the status of the project, the timeline for the Mainnet launch, and how users can get started with the platform.
Regarding the Mainnet launch, Tabasco reveals that it’s quite close, with the team aiming for either late Q3 or early Q4 of 2024. He acknowledges that timelines can shift but highlights that this is their current target. To build anticipation and allow users to familiarize themselves with the technology, Particle Network plans to release some initial implementations of universal accounts before the full Mainnet launch.
Tabasco explains that users won’t need to download a Particle Network-specific wallet. Instead, they can use their existing wallets such as MetaMask, Phantom, Kepler, or Unisat. This approach allows users to onboard universal accounts using any interface they’re comfortable with.
He describes the process as similar to current account abstraction flows: the user’s existing wallet is used to generate a smart account, in this case, a universal account. This account then holds the funds used for transactions. Tabasco mentions that users will be able to access their universal accounts through WalletConnect, with potential future options like browser extensions.
Tabasco paints a picture of the user experience, emphasizing its simplicity and seamlessness. When users connect to an application supporting universal accounts, they’ll see all their balances consolidated across different chains. Transactions can automatically utilize funds from multiple chains, abstracting away the complexity for the user. He gives an example of buying an NFT on OpenSea, where the system might automatically use $USDC scattered across ten different chains, bridging the funds as needed, all without the user needing to understand or manage these complexities.
Tabasco shares information about their current program, Particle Pioneer: This program gives users early access to try universal accounts, allowing them to perform transactions, mint NFTs, and stress-test the system. Users can earn points for their participation, incentivizing engagement with the platform. Tabasco directs interested listeners to pioneer.particle.network to get started.

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Show Information

Medium: YouTube (Video)
Show: The Edge Podcast
Show Title: Will Particle Network Unify All Crypto Apps Through Chain Abstraction?
Show Date: August 29, 2024