Originally published on: September 03, 2024
Offchain Labs, the innovative brains behind the Arbitrum blockchain and Stylus, have just rolled out the mainnet launch of Arbitrum Stylus. This groundbreaking development introduces a backward-compatible virtual machine that aims to break down barriers for traditional coders looking to dive into decentralized app (DApp) development within Web3.
The introduction of Stylus opens up new avenues for developers of all skill levels to create on Arbitrum using WebAssembly (WASM)-compatible languages they are already familiar with. This convergence is set to revolutionize the Web3 landscape, leading to the emergence of robust applications and use cases with significantly lower gas fees.
During the Korea Blockchain Week conference on Sept. 3, Offchain Labs’ co-founder and chief scientist, Ed Felten, highlighted how Stylus bridges the gap between Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) and conventional programming languages like Rust, C, and C++. This integration is poised to propel layer-2 scaling solutions away from the EVM’s constraints by harnessing the capabilities of new languages.
By offering support for multiple languages, Stylus empowers developers to leverage the tools that best suit their needs, fostering a more inclusive and dynamic development environment on Arbitrum.
In a separate statement, Steven Goldfeder, Offchain Labs’ CEO and co-founder, emphasized how developers can now expand their offerings using Stylus. Additionally, Felten revealed that Stylus programs have demonstrated superior performance compared to EVM-based programs, particularly in tasks requiring high computational power.
The efficiency of Stylus DApps enables more transactions within the gas limit, leading to reduced costs and addressing the growing demand for high-performing and secure smart contract languages. Offchain Labs’ future plans involve integrating popular protocols like ZK-proofs into Arbitrum to tackle current high costs and computational requirements.
Looking ahead, Felten envisions a hybrid protocol that maximizes economic viability in a versatile environment. With Stylus driving cost reductions, the door is open for the development of more sophisticated decentralized finance (DeFi) applications.
As the Web3 landscape continues to evolve, initiatives like Arbitrum Stylus are reshaping the way traditional developers engage with blockchain technology, unlocking new opportunities and capabilities in the decentralized ecosystem.
