ENS Launches EVM Gateway, Enhancing Interoperability Between L1 and L2 Chains

ENS Domains (ens.eth) recently announced the launch of the EVM Gateway, a significant development in blockchain technology aimed at improving interoperability between Layer 1 (L1) and Layer 2 (L2) chains. This new open-source platform is anticipated to be a foundational element in the next generation of L2 resolvers and marks a key milestone in ENS’s L2 roadmap.

The EVM Gateway, accessible on GitHub, includes a generic Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol (CCIP)-Read gateway framework and a Solidity library. This innovative framework allows L1 smart contracts to efficiently and securely fetch and verify state information from other Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) chains, specifically L2s. This functionality is crucial for enhancing the communication and efficiency across different blockchain layers, fostering a more interconnected ecosystem.

Key features of the EVM Gateway include a modular design for trustless operations, simplicity in operations, and the flexibility to change targets (L2s) by simply swapping the address of a verifier contract. Users can choose to operate their own gateway or utilize an existing one, adding to the platform’s versatility.

The EVM Gateway is already available for early use on the Optimism Foundation’s Mainnet and Goerli, showcasing its practical applicability. In collaboration with the Optimism team, ENS has also introduced a sample decentralized application (dApp) using the EVM Gateway, further demonstrating its capabilities.

In addition to this technological advancement, ENS Domains announced a related event at ETHGlobal in Istanbul, inviting developers to explore the EVM Gateway. The event features a competition with a $4,000 prize pool for the “Best use of ENS on L2” category, encouraging innovation and practical applications of this new technology.

The EVM Gateway offers diverse applications, including fetching state proofs of data on other EVM chains for L1 smart contracts. The repository on GitHub provides detailed information on usage, including guidance on extending contracts with EVMFetcher, making view/pure context calls, and handling callbacks. The repository is divided into several packages, such as evm-gateway, l1-gateway, evm-verifier, l1-verifier, op-gateway, and op-verifier, each targeting different aspects of the gateway’s functionality.

This launch represents just the beginning of a series of innovations from ENS Domains, as the EVM Gateway opens up a realm of possibilities for communication and efficiency between L1, L2s, and decentralized applications (dApps). The blockchain community eagerly anticipates more updates and developments in this space.

Image source: Shutterstock