Monad: A new generation EVM-compatible PoS Layer 1 public chain

Monad is a new type of proof-of-stake ( PoS ) blockchain platform that is fully compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine ( EVM ), aimed at significantly enhancing the performance of the entire Ethereum ecosystem. As a decentralized computing platform, Monad achieves a processing capacity of 10,000 smart contract transactions ( tps ) per second through innovative virtual machine design and a Byzantine Fault Tolerance ( BFT ) consensus mechanism, far surpassing existing smart contract blockchains.

Technological Innovation

The Monad client is built from scratch using C++ and Rust, focusing on performance optimization. To break through the current performance bottlenecks of Ethereum, Monad has innovated in four key areas:

1. MonadBFT: A high-performance consensus mechanism that improves upon HotStuff, capable of reducing three rounds of communication to two rounds in the event of a leader timeout.

2. Delayed execution: decouples execution and consensus, allowing validating nodes to execute transactions at a more appropriate time, rather than being required to execute immediately at the time of consensus.

3. Parallel Execution: Adopting an optimistic execution strategy that allows for parallel processing of transactions while maintaining the same execution semantics as Ethereum.

4. MonadDb: A custom database designed for blockchain state storage, improving efficiency through native implementation of MPT data structures and asynchronous I/O technology.

These innovations enable Monad to achieve a block time of 1 second and finality of 1 second, while maintaining full compatibility with Ethereum developers and users.

Reasons for Choosing L1 over Rollup

The Monad team chose to build L1 instead of Rollup, mainly based on the following considerations:

1. Decentralization: L1 can achieve a higher degree of decentralization, especially in terms of block production.

2. Performance: As an independent L1, it can achieve deeper optimization and performance improvement, avoiding the constraints of the underlying chain.

3. Focus: The team is committed to building a high-performance, decentralized, and scalable EVM execution environment.

Project Team

Monad Labs was founded by former team members from Jump Trading:

• CEO Keone Hon: Former head of the high-frequency trading team at Jump Trading
• CTO James Hunsaker: Expert in systems engineering and low latency optimization
• COO Eunice Giarta: A product and technology leader with a background in traditional finance and fintech.

Financing Situation

In December 2022, Monad completed a $19 million financing round led by Dragonfly Capital, with participation from over 70 investors, including Placeholder Capital, Lemniscap, and Shima Capital.

Development Progress

Currently, Monad has not yet announced a testnet but has established partnerships with Layerzero and Wormhole. Community members can earn corresponding contribution roles by participating in community discussions or creating content.

Ecological Development

Currently, the following projects exist in the Monad ecosystem:

• DEX: TayaSwap( Testnet)
• Cross-chain bridge: Layerzero, Wormhole

Summary

Monad, as a POS mechanism EVM-compatible public chain created by a team of former trading experts, shows potential in technological innovation and performance optimization. However, as an emerging L1 project, Monad still needs to prove its value in the fierce competition of public chains. The project's proposed high-performance features, such as millisecond-level transactions and millisecond-level block confirmation, still need to be validated in practical applications.

Although the project is still in its early stages, it has already gained industry attention and important collaborations. With the launch of the testnet and further development of the ecosystem, Monad is expected to bring new possibilities to the blockchain space.