Metaversal is a Bankless newsletter for weekly level-ups on NFTs, virtual worlds, & more!
Dear Bankless Nation,
โBlobspaceโ is an upcoming feature of Ethereum.
Itโs introduced by EIP-4844, the networkโs next major protocol upgrade.
But what is it, how does it work, and whyโs it a big deal for NFTs?
Letโs walk through these questions for todayโs post!
-WMP
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Blobspace is a new blockchain-based resource market, distinct from the traditional blockspace we’re familiar with.
Instead of selling just blocks, Ethereum will soon be selling “blobs.” These blobs are essentially temporary chunks of transaction data that can be processed efficiently and flexibly.
Blobspace has its roots in Danksharding, a proposed design by Ethereum researcher Dankrad Feist that moved away from the idea of shards being multiple distinct blockchains and toward the idea of sharded data being multiple blobs within blocks.
Later a developer, protolambda, proposed a prototype of this system, which came to be called Proto-Danksharding and was later enshrined as an official upgrade proposal via EIP-4844.
Once implemented via EIP-4844, blobspace will drastically drop the gas costs and drastically improve the throughput capabilities of the Ethereum mainnet. Even still, the upgrade is transitional and paves the way to even more scaling and efficiency improvements in a later full-fledged Danksharding implementation.
Weโre shipping another tool for your crypto tool belt ๐
Claimables just launched on Bankless. What are Claimables? How much will you claim?
Blobspace introduces blob-carrying transactions. As Ethereum researcher Ben Edgington has previously put it, โEIP-4844 bolts blobs onto blocks.โ
For the specifics here, an invaluable resource is the Blobspace 101 primer by Domothy. Therein he explains that actual blob data isnโt stored in transactions. Instead, itโs in a โsidecarโ thatโs to be checked and shared on Ethereumโs consensus layer.
Making a blob involves some serious math, but in essence:
-
You take your data and split it into small chunks ๐โ
-
These chunks are then used to create a mathematical equation ๐งฉโก๏ธ๐ฃ
-
This equation is then evaluated at a specific point to create a “commitment” or a kind of unique identifier for the blob ๐โก๏ธ๐
-
This commitment is then processed to create a final version that the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) can use ๐โก๏ธ๐ฅ๏ธ
Ultimately, blobs are stored for ~18 days and can be deleted after this period, yet even upon removal they can still be found through other means, like block explorers. Efficient but persistent!
Notably, blobs also have their own pricing system called โblob gas.โ This is separate from Ethereumโs regular gas system and isnโt affected by mainnet congestion. Instead, the price of blob gas will be determined by how many blobs are being used at any given time.
Not only may EIP-4844 improve Ethereumโs throughput toward ~1,000 transactions per second, itโs also poised to majorly reduce the gas costs associated with using Ethereum.
That second point is huge news for Ethereum layer-two (L2) scaling solutions, as their main costs come from having to post their data to the Ethereum mainnet. Once posting this data becomes much cheaper, using L2s will become that much cheaper in kind!
Donโt get me wrong, L2s are already pretty inexpensive to use. But thatโs why EIP-4844 is such a big deal, it will make L2s way cheaper than they are today.
This is fantastic for the future prospects of NFTs since the future of NFTs is, yes, on L2s (and L3s that settle to L2s, etc.). NFT-centric rollups like Zora Network, Base, and Frame are about to get way more performant, and thatโs going to translate to better UX for their users since minting costs are poised to plummet.
We didnโt have ultra cheap, ultra fast transactions during the initial 2017 and 2021 NFT crazes. Will their impending arrival pave the way for a third such craze?
Perhaps, because so many more things are possible in such a paradigm. New kinds of efficiencies, new kinds of experiments, NFT apps that can offer millions of users good UX instead of hundreds.
Yet take note that blobspace wonโt just make NFT transactions exponentially cheaper โ itโll also open up new design possibilities that weโve only just begun to imagine.
For example, Pob Studio recently noted that blobspace can disintermediate platforms like Blur and OpenSea by fostering fully decentralized NFT marketplaces within the โbulletin boardโ space of blobs. Thatโs just one idea here, and there are more to come.
All in all, then, the arrival of EIP-4844 will mark a transformative shift for the entire NFT ecosystem. As we stand on the cusp of this new era, more inclusive, efficient, and innovative NFT projects are now just around the corner. Both creators and collectors should brace themselves for another renaissance in the world of NFTs accordingly!
A Bankless Citizen โ turned $264 into $6,077 last year. A 22x ROI ๐ in a bear market!
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Not financial or tax advice. This newsletter is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. This newsletter is not tax advice. Talk to your accountant. Do your own research.
Disclosure. From time-to-time I may add links in this newsletter to products I use. I may receive commission if you make a purchase through one of these links. Additionally, the Bankless writers hold crypto assets. See our investment disclosures here.
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- Source: https://metaversal.banklesshq.com/p/blobspace-nfts
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