Uniswap Labs Set to Launch Unichain Layer-2 Network on Testnet This Thursday

Uniswap Labs, the team behind the popular decentralized exchange Uniswap, has some exciting news. They’re launching a new layer-2 network, and it’s set to go live on testnet this Thursday.

This new project, called Unichain, is built using Optimism's OP Stack. This is the same framework that Coinbase and Sony have used for their own layer-2 networks.

The goal? To make transactions faster and cheaper on the Ethereum blockchain while also boosting liquidity.

Unichain will initially launch on a private test network, as stated in their press release. Uniswap Labs is leading the technical development, leveraging Optimism's technology. This means Unichain will be part of the Superchain, a network of Optimism-affiliated chains, which also includes Coinbase's layer-2 blockchain, Base.

“People actually want things to feel instant,” said Hayden Adams, the CEO of Uniswap Labs. He shared this insight during an interview with CoinDesk, discussing the motivation behind this initiative.

This announcement fits into a larger trend within the Ethereum scaling community. Since late 2023, major crypto exchanges have been launching their own layer-2 solutions. Coinbase created Base using OP Stack, and OKX has introduced X Layer, built with technology from Polygon.

Over the past year, layer-2 solutions have become widespread. However, some industry experts worry about growing fatigue and fragmentation due to the sheer number of these networks. Some analysts even predict that we could see thousands of layer-2 networks in the coming years, with teams already working on layer-3 solutions that would run on top of layer-2s.

Adams believes this fatigue comes from an imbalance. There are many developers focused on infrastructure but not enough working on practical applications for that infrastructure. This creates a situation where numerous platforms compete for developers, but there aren’t enough developers looking for platforms.

He sees Unichain as a potential DeFi hub for various chains, similar to how Uniswap acts as a liquidity center on Ethereum. By connecting to Optimism’s Superchain ecosystem, Unichain could lead to products and user experiences that feel more familiar and intuitive.

As they unveil this new network, the Uniswap Labs team plans to introduce unique technological features, developed in partnership with Flashbots, the Ethereum research team. These features will include a trusted execution environment (TEE) for block building and a secure computing area to ensure transactions and code remain untampered. They will also implement a community validation network.

The TEE aims to increase transparency in transaction ordering, with block building times between 200 and 250 milliseconds. This is a significant improvement compared to the 12 seconds it takes on the Ethereum mainnet and the two seconds typical for most layer-2 networks.

“Going from two seconds to 250 milliseconds for the user experience is extremely impactful,” Adams emphasized.

Faster block times could also reduce chances for maximal extractable value (MEV). This is when automated trading bots can front-run transactions waiting in a blockchain's queue before they get processed.

The community validation network, expected to launch in 2025, aims to enhance decentralization. It will allow full nodes to verify blocks by staking UNI, according to the Uniswap team’s press release.

“This approach reduces the risk of sequencers proposing conflicting or invalid blocks. That could delay transaction finality or expose users to financial risks from interacting with unfinalized blocks,” they explained.