Oct 16, 2024
Would your mom or dad be able to use a dApp? What about your grandma?
Usually, the question is met with a resounding NO!
There are several hurdles we face when it comes to the mass adoption of web3. The truth is that only a tiny portion of the market is prepared to employ Web3 apps, and the industry as a whole has failed to offer any kind of streamlined user experience. The UI/UX standards alone almost require a Master's in blockchain to use properly. So, what can we do as industry leaders to solve this problem?
Hurdles to Mainstream Adoption
Let’s break it down.
The typical user will only use a Web3 app if the intricacies of the technology are reduced and replaced with a more straightforward experience. It is similar to what we went through in the dot-com era.
Even though people who are enthusiastic about blockchain technology might be prepared to go beyond the learning curve and obstacles associated with utilizing Web3, it simply isn't enough.
The popularity of Web2 apps like Apple Pay, Cash App, and Instagram has demonstrated the value of clear user interfaces, easy sign-on procedures, and seamless interactions. These applications have onboarded billions of users, something the cryptocurrency sector has not yet managed to do.
In short, Web3 has to offer the advantages of decentralization, like self-sovereignty and resistance to censorship, with recognizable user interfaces that all users can use.
Fragmentation Issues of Web3
Once upon a time, a much simpler time, there was only Bitcoin. Over time, multitudes of L1s and L2s popped up, resulting in a cluttered and fragmented ecosystem, and while these hundreds of chains have solved some significant issues, they’ve also created a list of major problems for end-users:
Gas tokens: One of the main obstacles for users is perhaps having to manually bridge, buy, and manage different tokens on several chains just for transaction fees.
Account/wallet fragmentation: The requirement to actively switch networks and interact with several accounts for a user to view their entire holdings is a significant annoyance. This problem is further exacerbated when using non-EVM chains, where a distinct address and wallet are required.
Chain-specific Applications: Because of the blockchain ecosystem's fragmentation, many apps and possibilities are frequently isolated within certain chains, requiring users to go through the aforementioned difficulties to access them. On the flip side, founders and developers have higher costs to distribute apps across several chains.
What does Chain Abstraction achieve?
The goal of chain abstraction is to address the fragmented Web3 user experience caused by the growth of public blockchains, from L1s to L3s and everything in between.
This fragmentation, as explained above, hinders Web3's adoption because it necessitates highly technical and proactive users with liquidity spread across multiple blockchains, siloing dApps within an increasing number of ecosystems. It also causes user experience issues.
To put it simply, in a chain-abstracted world, a user connects to a dApp and starts an operation that may span many blockchain networks using a single interface. The action is then automatically performed and settled.
Chain abstraction removes the need for users to differentiate between blockchains by abstracting the intricacies of blockchain technology, enabling smooth interaction with many blockchains.
Making it easier to interact with different blockchains and lowering the difficulty of managing several accounts and assets will improve user experience.
Regardless of the chains involved, this design pattern reduces the need for users to comprehend the intricacies of any given underlying blockchain, concentrating instead on carrying out user operations in the most efficient way possible. This lowers the barrier to entry for typical consumers, increasing the accessibility of blockchain technology.
Chain Abstraction’s Future
Although Chain Abstraction is a relatively new concept, it has enormous potential to revolutionize DeFi. We anticipate the emergence of ever more advanced and intuitive apps as developers continue to experiment and innovate in this field.
For more information on how U-topia is leading the charge with the Chain and Account Abstraction movement, head to our socials and follow us for more updates:
