Meta Description: The team behind Polkadot strikes once again! With the addition of JAM and AB, DOT will attract even more investors, skyrocketing its already large popularity
Like most tokens after BTC, Polkadot can be traded both at exchanges and decentralized protocols.
DOT’s protocol is designed to enhance the communication between blockchains to allow the flow of value from one to another without intermediaries. Polkadot is fast and scalable, thus removing process time from the main blockchain.
The team behind Polkadot recently introduced two new technical upgrades that would take the token to the next level. In April 2024, the creator of DOT and Ethereum – Dr. Gavin Wood, announced JAM – Join-Accumulate Model.
The other upgrade is Asynchronous Backing, paving the way for DOT 2.0.
What is Polkadot?
$DOT , the project's token, serves two main purposes – as a governance token, allowing holders to vote on the protocol's future, and for staking, which is how Polkadot verifies transactions.
How is Polkadot structured?
Polkadot’s network is composed of multiple chains – the main relay chain, and numerous user-created parallel ones. The connecting layer, known as bride, is used to transfer value and data between the blockchains, and even between non-blockchain databases.
How does Polkadot work?
Polkadot processes a lot of information through the relay chain with the help of the parachains. This allows DOT to process over 1.000 transactions per second, way above Bitcoin and Ethereum. And Polkadot keeps adding parachains as it grows.
Polkadot JAM Explained
Despite the huge processing power that the relay chain and the parachains carry, their current architecture is limited in terms of supported services. This costs the team more efforts to run services outside of the parachain.
The Join-Accumulate Model (JAM) has the task of making the relay chain more versatile and streamlined. This is going to happen through:
Increased of flexibility
JAM will remove the limitations of services that can run on the relay chain only. This will allow for a wide range of uses, not only parachains.
Developer friendly
JAM makes it easier for developers, as it needs only three specific functions to get the service up and running:
🔥Refine
🔥Accumulate
🔥Ontransfer
This will ease development complexity, especially when compared to the parachain model.
The parachains will offer even better flexibility and a larger variety of uses. Their integration to the relay chain will be available through the implementation of HRMP and XCMP (more on them – later).
The limitations suffered by the parachains result in fewer available applications, unlike with Ethereum. There, ERC20 tokens are seamlessly integrated with smart contracts, thanks to XCMP protocol.
Key features of JAM
Transactionless environment
JAM operates without transactions, but the applications deployed through the platform are handled by users and offer functionalities that traditional blockchains cannot. Apps can run until they don’t run out of DOT.
Multi-core computation
JAM’s parallel processing allows Polkadot to handle a huge number of chains at the same time. This is expected on the relay chain before JAM.
Smart Contracts & ZK-rollups
JAM offers enhanced functionalities and scalability by integrating smart contracts and ZK-rollups. JAM’s smart contracts can operate autonomously and communicate independently with the external environment. This feature isn’t present in Ethereum, where users need smart contracts.
JAM also supports UTXO, similar to BTC’s accounting framework.
SAFROLE, a SNARK-based block production algorithm
SAFROLE is derived from SASSAFRAS is great for anonymity features and is mostly fork-free.
XCMP importance
JAM needs to be fully implemented to ensure that the PoV (proof of validity) remains manageable and in line with the framework. This will leave no room for arbitrary adjustments.
DOT token
The token remains vital for the core time purchase. Yet, JAM will expand how core time can be used.
JAM performance target
350 JAM cores
JAM will support about 350 cores with an execution time of 6 seconds and with 5 Mb input. This will total at around 2.3 Gbps.
To put it simply – 1 core is equal to 1 parachain. This will result in tripling the current parachain computing power.
A throughput of 850MB
JAM plans to reach a throughput of 850MB. For example, Solana’s current version is about 125 MB/s, and the Firedancer update skyrocketed it to 1250 MB/s according to VanEck.
The future looks bright for JAM
JAM won’t be complete for the next two years, but it looks like a really useful tool. With the combined pros of smart contracts and the parachains, JAM could spearhead blockchain innovations. With all its technological perks, JAM will transform the Polkadot ecosystem and blockchain entirely.
Asynchronous Backing
Asynchronous backing is the next big Polkadot upgrade that will greatly increase parachains' performance and Polkadot's ecosystem's scalability. Asynchronous backing is the first major scaling optimization for parachains since they were launched in 2021. It is expected to bring a significant performance boost to the entire Polkadot ecosystem.
How will asynchronous backing benefit DOT, its infrastructure, and its users?
Asynchronous backing will benefit each participant in Polkadot, parachains, and dApp builders and also users as it will allow for much better UX when using dApps.
How asynchronous backing work?
Currently, every new block produced by parachains references a relay chain block as its anchor. The Polcadot relay chain can be viewed as a parent to the latest block generated by a parachain.
Up until now, parachain blocks could only use the most recent block on the relay chain for backing as its relay chain parent. This is now changing with the arrival of asynchronous backing. Now the latest block produced by a parachain can only refer to and be backed by the latest block on the Polkadot relay chain. This means that the latest parachain block and relay chain block are somewhat synchronized. That's why this current backing mechanism is called synchronous backing.
What is backing and how AB will improve it?
To clarify what backing of parachain blocks means, the backing is the process during which parablocks are verified by a subset of validators on the Polkadot relay chain. The problem this synchronization brings is that it limits parachain's throughput.
Also, parachain blocks can only be proposed for validation by validators on the Polkadot relay chain and every other relay chain block, which means the block on the relay chain currently lasts 6 seconds, while on parachains twice as much 12 seconds.
Test it yourself
If you go to Polkadot.js UI and click Network and Explorer, you will see that block generation on Polkadot relay chain takes 6 seconds, while on parachains it's 12 seconds. So whereas synchronous backing that is currently still in use requires parachain blocks to be backed by the most recent relay chain block, asynchronous backing loosens this constraint.
How will asynchronous backing fix these issues?
Asynchronous backing desynchronizes relay chain growth from parachain growth, which will allow collators to propose parachain blocks to be backed using older relay chain blocks as their parent. And that's why asynchronous backing is such a game changer as it enables parachain collators to create pipelines of multiple parachain blocks that haven't yet been included in the relay chain and that will lead to substantially increased scalability of parachains.
Increase parachain block capacity
Asynchronous backing will enable two main things. First, it will improve the parachain block capacity, which means asynchronous backing will increase usable block space in parachain blocks.
Increase parachain block capacity
Asynchronous backing will enable two main things. First, it will improve the parachain block capacity, which means asynchronous backing will increase usable block space in parachain blocks.
Decrease parablock time
The second, will decrease parablock time, which is the time it takes collators to generate parachain blocks from currently 12 seconds to 6. Parachain block execution time will be increased 4 times from the current 0.5 second to 2 seconds That means 4 times greater space in each parablock, which means 4 times more data will fit in each new parablock.
Agile Core Time
Additionally, the decrease in parachain block production time from 12 seconds to 6 will lead to an additional 2x increase in parachain throughput, increasing the amount of work every parachain can do. This will lead to an 8x improvement in parachain throughput and hence to substantial scaling improvements of parachains.
Probably the most important thing is the benefits that AB will bring to developers and dApp users. Asynchronous backing will make possible agile core time, which will enable the allocation of block space in a more flexible and cost-efficient way.
Agile Core Time functionality will offer instantaneous access to block space that can be purchased on a pay-as-you-go basis and also the sale of bulk Core Time on a 4-week basis for all parachains and applications that need to be operating on Polkadot's core constantly. Agile Core Time will also enable for secondary market with block space, meaning parachains will be able to buy and sell block space that has been already purchased.
A worthwhile solution
Asynchronous backing is Polkadot's solution to congestion and high transaction fees that users experience on Ethereum, while still ensuring the same security guarantees and level of decentralization. Granted, Polkadot's parachains don't currently experience congestion, but once the adoption of parachains grows, Polkadot ecosystem will be ready to maintain great UX for users of parachained apps thanks to asynchronous backing. AB is currently being tested by Polkadot.
In conclusion
The ambitious team behind Polkadot strikes once again! With the addition of cutting-edge technologies such as JAM and AB, Polkadot will attract even more investors, skyrocketing its already large popularity. Both upgrades will make the blockchain faster, safer, and more accessible.
Frequently asked questions
What is Polkadot and its primary function?
Polkadot is a blockchain protocol that allows communication between blockchains. That way you can transfer value and data without intermediaries.
How does Polkadot achieve high transaction speeds?
Polkadot utilizes a relay chain and parachains to handle over 1,000 transactions per second.
What is the Join-Accumulate Model (JAM) introduced by Polkadot?
JAM is a new structure that will make the relay chain more versatile. It will be versatile and flexible, and it will support smart contracts, multi-core computation, and ZK-rollups.
What is Asynchronous Backing (AB) and its benefits?
Asynchronous Backing (AB) will desynchronize the relay chain growth from that of the parachains. This will allow more efficient block production, leading to improved block capacity, decreased parablock time, and agile core tim.
