The options for layer-2 scaling are expanding as Polygon launches its long-awaited zkEVM technology on Ethereum mainnet today.

The zero-knowledge Ethereum Virtual Machine is a technology that can execute smart contract transactions in a way that can prove the information is executed correctly without revealing the information itself on Ethereum’s mainnet, thereby bundling more transactions in less mainnet blockspace.

Sandeep Nailwal, the co-founder and chief operating officer of Polygon, told Blockworks this type of technology is considered the “holy grail of scaling.”

“With the power of mathematics…you can compute something off-chain on layer-2, then verify everything back on Ethereum in a very succinct way in a very short amount of time,” Nailwal said.

Polygon’s launch on Ethereum comes just days after Matter Labs zkSync Era opened to the public on Ethereum mainnet.

Similar to zkSync’s offering, most of the Polygon zkEVM’s code is open-source, but under an AGPL v3 license.

“That means that not only current repositories, but all future modifications and distributions as well, will remain open source, ensuring the code cannot be used for proprietary purposes,” Nailwal said.

The exception is the Polygon zkEVM prover, for which an open-source license has not been selected at time of publication.

Nailwal notes that Polygon zkEVM is EVM equivalent, whereas zkSync’s offering is EVM compatible.

According to the framework laid out by Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin in August 2022, zkSync Era is classified as a “Type-4 (high-level-language equivalent),” and there are advantages and disadvantages of various approaches to bringing the EVM to a zero-knowledge rollup. The merits of various tradeoffs are an ongoing topic of debate.

Like zkSync Era, and the current crop of optimistic rollups, the Polygon zkEVM is not yet decentralized, but eventually, Nailwal hopes that Polygon’s new offering will take that step.

“Everything is in the hands of the community,” he said.

Security comes first

In addition to three internal audits, Nailwal notes that Polygon’s zkEVM has also gone through two rounds of external security audits from blockchain cybersecurity companies Hexens and Spearbit.

Ongoing, continuous audits are expected for the next three to four months following mainnet launch and a multi-million dollar bounty program will also be in place, he said.

The emphasis on security was also central to zkSync Era’s mainnet release, but Polygon said that Matter Labs had shared audits that cover their smart contracts and sequencer, not their prover.

“This raises serious questions about security, at least until a full audit is released. The prover for Polygon zkEVM, meanwhile, has been audited, and is open-source,” Brendan Farmer, Polygon Zero co-founder, told Blockworks.

A spokesperson for zkSync told Blockworks that the prover had been audited by Halborn Security, and pointed to the blockchain’s documentation, which notes that a recently completed review has not yet been published.

Even conscientious security measures can leave gaps, however, and Nailwal notes that he does not wish users to bring millions of dollars to the zkEVM immediately.

“Zk is new technology…so we [want] people [to be] as cautious as possible,” he said.

Drawing on the example of the recent Euler Finance attacks, Nailwal cautioned that interacting with smart contracts is not without risk.

“Euler, after running for two years, a bug was found — this can happen any day, on any smart contract-based application.” he said.

ZkEVMs are sure to be compared to their optimistic rollup counterparts — the most successful to-date being Optimism and Arbitrum.

“Arbitrum took one and a half years before people actually started bringing in money,” Nailwal said. “So we don’t expect people to bring a lot of money [initially].”

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In terms of transaction activity, Aptos has significantly outperformed Polygon and Sui. Both APT and MATIC prices surged, accompanied by increased social volumes.
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However, despite these gains, Aptos (APT) did not attract as much attention during the bull run compared to meme coins or major cryptocurrencies.

Surge in Activity on Aptos Network
Recently, Aptos has experienced a significant surge in activity, surpassing Sui Network to process the second-highest number of daily transactions in the last 24 hours. Aptos facilitated over 16.4 million transactions during this period, with a substantial portion—over 10 million transactions—attributed to the Tapos Cat game. This clicker game allows users to fund their Tapos Wallet with APT and interact with virtual cats to earn HEART rewards.
Tapos Cat has garnered attention with over 86 million transactions and 50,000 accounts created so far, resembling the popularity of SPAM SUI on the Sui Network.

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Due to this surge in activity, Aptos has outperformed major cryptocurrency networks like Polygon. If this trend continues, Aptos may attract addresses away from other networks, including Polygon, bolstering its position in the market.

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Challenges for Aptos in Competing with Polygon
While Aptos has recently shown a surge in activity, maintaining long-term dominance requires continuous innovation and a diverse range of applications. The sustainability of this momentum remains crucial for Aptos moving forward.
Polygon boasts a robust user base, established DeFi applications, and a well-developed network, posing a formidable challenge for Aptos to surpass.
In areas beyond transaction activity, Aptos trails behind Polygon. Polygon maintains dominance in decentralized exchange (DEX) volumes and total value locked (TVL) on its network, highlighting a significant disparity.

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To narrow the gap and compete effectively with Polygon, Aptos will need substantial growth in these areas, demonstrating increased adoption and usage across its platform.
Also Read:   Shiba Inu Surges 1590% in Key Metric

Source: Artemis
Price Movement and Social Media Popularity: APT vs MATIC
Price Performance: Both Aptos (APT) and Polygon (MATIC) showed positive price movements over the past week. APT increased by 4.7%, while MATIC grew by 2.1%, reflecting a strong performance for both cryptocurrencies in the market.
Social Media Popularity: Despite the price gains, APT lagged significantly behind MATIC in terms of social media popularity. MATIC garnered notably higher social media engagement compared to APT during this period, as indicated by analysis of Santiment’s data.

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Insights from Santiment: According to Santiment’s data analysis, MATIC experienced a substantial rise in social volume, underscoring its increasing presence and discussions across social media platforms compared to APT.

Important: Please note that this article is only meant to provide information and should not be taken as legal, tax, investment, financial, or any other type of advice.

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