Optimism.io: OP Crypto Token, L2 Network & Ecosystem for the Public Good

Optimism.io stands out as a unique and innovative platform in the blockchain space, attracting both token holders and app developers. More than just a blockchain, it represents a novel experiment in sustainable ecosystem funding, driven by protocol revenue. Its core principle, Retroactive Public Goods Funding, is simple yet revolutionary: if you build for the public good, you get paid. This deep-dive article will explore the various facets of Optimism.io, its mission, 38 apps in the ecosystem, and its potential impact on the future of Ethereum and blockchain technology at large.

The Vision of Optimism.io

Optimism.io is built on the premise of public good. It aims to create a sustainable ecosystem where developers are incentivized to create and innovate for the benefit of all. This is achieved through Retroactive Public Goods Funding, a mechanism that rewards those who contribute positively to the ecosystem. The platform’s mainnet, OP Mainnet, is the embodiment of this vision, serving as a conduit for protocol revenue that fuels this sustainable funding.

Retroactive Public Goods Funding: A New Paradigm

Retroactive Public Goods Funding is a groundbreaking concept that sets Optimism.io apart from other blockchain platforms. It operates on the principle that those who build for the public good should be rewarded for their contributions. This approach encourages developers to create applications and solutions that benefit the community as a whole, fostering an environment of innovation and progress.

Optimism as a Layer 2 Solution

Optimism.io, also known as Optimistic Ethereum, is a Layer 2 solution for the Ethereum network. Layer 2 solutions are designed to help scale the Ethereum network, allowing it to process more transactions per second and at a lower cost. They achieve this by moving most transactions off the main Ethereum blockchain (Layer 1) and onto a secondary layer.

Optimism uses a technology called Optimistic Rollup, which is a type of Layer 2 construction. It allows the Ethereum network to achieve faster transaction times and lower fees while maintaining the same level of security as the main Ethereum network. This makes it an attractive solution for developers looking to build scalable decentralized applications.

Governance and the Optimism Collective

The Optimism Collective is a group of companies, communities, and citizens working together to reward public goods and build a sustainable future for Ethereum. The collective aims to dispel the myth that public goods cannot be profitable. This is achieved through a new model for rewarding those who create or sustain public goods – retroactive public goods funding (RPGF), to support projects and communities building for the common good.

The governance of the Optimism Collective is experimental and agile, iterating towards a system that can stand the test of time. It consists of two houses: the Token House and the Citizens’ House.

The Optimism Token (OP)

The Optimism platform has its own native token, known as the Optimism (OP) token. This token is used within the Optimism ecosystem and can be tracked using tools like Etherscan. The token plays a crucial role in the platform’s operations and its Retroactive Public Goods Funding mechanism.

Token House

The Token House is where the governance of the Optimism Collective began with the launch of the OP token. OP holders, as members of the Token House, are responsible for submitting, deliberating, and voting on various types of governance proposals. They can either vote directly or delegate their OP voting power to an eligible third party. The Token House votes on proposal types like governance fund grants, protocol upgrades, inflation adjustment, director removal, treasury appropriations, and rights protection.

Citizens’ House

The Citizens’ House is a large-scale experiment in non-plutocratic governance and retroactive funding of public goods. It is responsible for retroactive public goods funding (RPGF). The specifics of this system will evolve as the Collective grows.

The Optimism Network Explorer

The Optimism Network Explorer is a tool that allows users to explore and search the Optimism Network for transactions, addresses, tokens, prices, and other activities. This tool is crucial for developers and users alike, providing transparency and insight into the operations of the Optimism network.

The Role of OP Mainnet

OP Mainnet is more than just a blockchain; it’s the engine that drives Optimism.io‘s vision of sustainable ecosystem funding. By generating protocol revenue, it provides the necessary resources to fund the Retroactive Public Goods Funding mechanism. This ensures that developers who contribute to the public good are adequately compensated for their efforts, promoting a healthy and sustainable ecosystem.

Ecosystem of Apps

The Optimism network hosts a collection of decentralized applications (dApps) that span various categories. These include DeFi (Decentralized Finance), NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens), Bridges, Wallets, Tools, Portfolio Trackers, and DAOs (Decentralized Autonomous Organizations). One example of a dApp on the Optimism network is SushiSwap, a platform where users can swap, earn, stack yields, lend, borrow, and leverage all on one decentralized, community-driven platform.

The ecosystem of apps on Optimism is vast and diverse, providing a wide range of services and functionalities to its users. This vibrant ecosystem is a testament to the platform’s versatility and its ability to cater to a wide range of needs within the blockchain space. As the platform continues to grow and evolve, it’s expected that the ecosystem of apps will continue to expand, offering even more services and functionalities to its users.

Apps in the Optimism ecosystem:

SushiSwap: Swap, earn, stack yields, lend, borrow, leverage all on one decentralized, community-driven platform.
Avault: A disruptive way to interact with an array of web3 Defi dApps. Simplify the complex and manual cross-chain steps for users.
Bakery DAO: The Bakery provides exclusive DeFi research with Web3. Pastries are dynamic NFTs, letting users contribute, level-up, and get rewarded for their info!
BarnBridge: A risk tokenizing protocol that lets users leverage or hedge their DeFi positions.
Beamer: Beamer allows consolidation of assets across rollups, make P2P payments to recipients on other rollups, and access dApps on other rollups.
Beefy: Beefy Finance is a Multi-Chain Yield Optimizer Protocol.
Beethoven X: Beethoven X is a community-driven DEX. As the first official friendly fork of Balancer V2, Beethoven X leverages best in class DeFi protocols to offer novel decentralized investment strategies.
Biconomy Hyphen: Biconomy, a web3 infra project solving transaction layer problems, built Hyphen, the fastest & cheapest cross-chain liquidity bridge in the market.
Binance Connect: Buy and sell 50+ cryptocurrencies on a platform trusted and used by millions of users worldwide.
BitBTC: BitBTC makes it easier for BTC to buy everything!
Bitget: Bitget is the world’s leading digital asset trading platform with 2 million registered users worldwide, offering spot trading, futures trading and digital asset purchasing services.
Bitkub: Thailand’s No. 1 digital asset exchange platform, regulated by the Thai SEC and licensed by the Thai Ministry of Finance.
BlockVision: BlockVision provides node services like Infura and Alchemy, as well as basic and enhanced FT/NFT APIs, Alerts, and a full development platform.
BlueSweep: Easiest way to Sweep NFTs on Optimism. Save up to 76% gas for buying NFTs. Sweep up to 36 NFTs at once.
Boardroom: Boardroom is a DAO governance aggregator helping members manage proposals to make faster, smarter, and more informed decisions.
Bored Town: Bored Town is a collection of 5555 open-source (aka CC0) Bored Town Monsters living on the Optimism blockchain.
BoringDAO: BoringDAO is a DAO-Driven cross-chain service provider. We provide secure, easy and fast cross-chain solutions for blockchain networks.
Bridge Wallet: Buy ETH and USDC directly on Optimism, use the ecosystem’s apps from your phone, and cash out funds back on your bank account at any time.
Bungee: Bungee is the Google Maps for the multi-chain world. A bridge aggregator that helps users discover the best bridges to move their assets across chains.
Bybit: The most reliable cryptocurrency exchange. Trade spot pairs for 0 fees!
Cask Protocol: Cask is a decentralized non-custodial protocol for managing automated money flows in web3.
Celer: Celer Network is a blockchain interoperability protocol enabling a one-click UX accessing tokens, DeFi, GameFi, NFTs, etc., across multiple chains.
Celer cBridge: Celer cBridge is a decentralized and non-custodial asset bridge that supports 130+ different tokens across 30+ blockchains and layer-2 rollups.
ChainHop: ChainHop is a cross-chain, one-click swap protocol that offers deep liquidity from top DEXs and bridges with fast transactions and the best rates.
Chainbase: Chainbase is a Web3 interaction layer infrastructure that provides open, cloud-based, SQL-generated APIs for real-time multi-chain data query/index.
Chainlink: Chainlink’s decentralized oracle network provides reliable, tamper-proof inputs and outputs for complex smart contracts on any blockchain.
Circular Art: Circular Art is a generative art platform designed to sustainably fund public goods while providing a platform for artists to thrive.
Clipper: Decentralized exchange (DEX) built to give the self-made crypto trader the best possible prices on small trades (< $10k).
Clique: Clique builds a new type of primitives, identity oracles, that bring web2 user behavior and identity data on-chain.
Coin98: Coin98 is a non-custodial, multi-chain wallet and Web3 gateway.
CoinBrain: CoinBrain is a crypto analytics platform that combines on-chain and off-chain data.
CoinTool: Cointool is an online cryptocurrency toolbox that provides basic tool support for the web3 world!
Coinpassport: Proof of Personhood using passport verifications for Optimism dApps.
Coinshift: Coinshift simplifies treasury management by providing efficient multisig tooling.
Connext: Connext is a leading protocol for fast, fully noncustodial transfers and contract calls between EVM-compatible systems.
Cookbook: Cookbook is the hub for smart contracts. It is one platform where you can find, deploy, and collaborate on any contract in EVM.
Cryptex Finance: Building innovative, open-source financial solutions for the global crypto community including the world’s first Total Crypto Market Cap Token TCAP.
Cryptio: Cryptio is an automated crypto transaction monitoring platform for financial reporting, tax and accounting.

Building the Future of Ethereum

Optimism.io is not just about its own ecosystem; it’s also about contributing to the broader Ethereum community. By providing a platform where developers are incentivized to build for the public good, Optimism.io is helping to shape the future of Ethereum. It’s creating a model that other blockchain platforms can follow, promoting a more sustainable and equitable blockchain industry.

Joining the Optimism.io Community

Optimism.io is not just a platform; it’s a community. Developers, innovators, and enthusiasts are encouraged to join the platform’s Discord channel, where they can contribute to the ongoing conversation about the future of Ethereum and blockchain technology. By joining the Optimism.io community, individuals can play an active role in shaping the future of this exciting and rapidly evolving industry.

Optimism’s Future

Optimism.io represents a significant step forward in the world of blockchain technology. Its innovative approach to sustainable ecosystem funding, embodied in the Retroactive Public Goods Funding mechanism and the OP Mainnet, sets it apart from other platforms. By incentivizing developers to build for the public good, Optimism.io is fostering a more sustainable and equitable blockchain industry. As it continues to grow and evolve, it’s clear that Optimism.io will play a pivotal role in shaping the future of Ethereum and the broader blockchain industry.