βͺZora
NFT-Centric Layer 2 OP Chain powered by OP Stack Bedrock
Introduction
Zora is stepping up as one of the pioneering OP Stack chains to join the Superchain. It transitioned from an NFT minting platform and community to rolling out an L2 scaling solution. It empowers users with the liberty to innovate or collect without any boundaries.
Dive in to discover more about Zora, the NFT-centric L2 ecosystem championing both artists and collectors.
Vision
Zora's mission is crystal clear: to forge a Layer 2 solution for NFTs that's engaging, straightforward, and pocket-friendly for both creators and aficionados. They're on a quest to dismantle entry barriers and craft a user-centric experience ποΈ.
Their ambition?
To arm artists with avant-garde tools, enabling them to mint diverse content, be it videos π₯, melodies π΅, visuals πΌοΈ, HTML, or even entire web portals π.
The emphasis?
Eradicating financial or structural roadblocks β, paving the way for boundless artistic exploration.
The firm has often drawn parallels between its services and well-known platforms like Shopify or WordPress, known for their user-friendly interfaces for creating e-commerce sites and blogs, respectively. However, Zora applies this ease and accessibility to the sphere of NFTs and the burgeoning Web 3.0 economy.
Usage
For Users, Why Use Zora?
So as a user, you might be either a collector or an artist who is looking for tools to let them mint their collection and sell their art.
What are the benefits of using Zora?
Toggle for the steps:
Useful Links
How Secure/Decentralized is Zora?
To go in-depth into the security and Decentralization of Zora check L2 Beatβs comprehensive report π
For Devs
For Investors
Funding received
In May 2022, Zora secured a $50 million investment in a funding round spearheaded by Haun Ventures, establishing a company valuation of $600 million.
As of June, Horne revealed that Zora had attracted approximately 130,000 users. For the latest number of Daily Active Addresses check our metrics page.
Specialized development tools
Additionally, in previous discussions with Decrypt, Horne explained that Zora's revenue stream is derived from offering specialized development tools for sale. These tools assist other enterprises in tailoring Zora's no-cost protocol to suit their specific needs, a strategy reminiscent of the one employed by Linux distributor RedHat.
Onchain Profit
This is what the chain makes in profit onchain each day. It quantifies profitability by comparing the revenue generated from L2 gas fees collected to the costs associated with data & proof posting onto the Ethereum blockchain. See current metrics here.
Top contracts on Zora
To find the most active projects on Zora it is best to explore the blockspace usage and look for contracts that have the highest consumption of gas or the highest transaction count. See current blockspace analytics here.
Technology
Under the hood, Zora Network is built on the OP Stack (Bedrock release), ensuring high-speed transactions with new blocks created every 2 seconds.β‘
Zora Network also plans to integrate with Optimism Superchains.
While NFTs are in focus, there haven't been changes made to the OP Stack modules to enhance NFT capabilities at the protocol level. Except for an important one!
Why does Zora have their own L2 rather than being a dApp?
To answer this question, we need to delve into the details and, first and foremost, understand the primary advantage of running your L2: control over the sequencer. For those who may not be familiar, the sequencer is a vital component of any Layer 2, responsible for gathering pending transactions and bundling them into L2 blocks. This block-building process also provides the benefit of collecting usersβ gas fees.πΈ
But what is the advantage?
Jacob, one of the co-founders of Zora, elaborated on a podcast that having control over the sequencer provides platform-level superpowers. These superpowers can, for instance, be utilized to abstract gas fees even further for users and enable features like 0 gas fee mints.
Role of the Superchainπ:
As a side note, while there are no reasonable solutions for fully decentralized sequencers developed yet, there's no need to worry excessively about it. Sequencers are unable to manipulate or sign transactions to steal funds from users.
The Superchainβs bridge security model ensures both the integrity (safety) and continuous operation (liveness) of chains. While the proof system vouches for the chain's validity, users can directly submit transactions to L1, ensuring uninterrupted service. So, if an OP Chain sequencer acts up, users can easily switch to another reliable OP Chain.
Furthermore it...
Accelerates activity
Makes the chain a part of the Public Goods Infrastructure
Simplifies development
Builds towards an interoperable crypto economy
Roadmap
What's next for Zora?
DAO creation
Zora envisions creating a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) with token-based membership, leveraging governance token sales to raise funds. This aims to foster a decentralized community to decide for Zora's future.
Featured Content
Zora's launch on growthepie with launch date's metric snapshot
Official Pages and Links
Documentation
Must-Read Articles
Videos and Podcasts
X Accounts to Follow
@ourZORA
@js_horne
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