Layer 2 Platform Arbitrum Announces V4 Testnet
- The V4 testnet is Arbitrum’s topmost mainnet release candidate.
- Once launched, V4 will simplify rollups, upgrade the node software, and reduce the cost of L1 transfers.
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According to the announcement, the testnet includes simplifications to the platform’s Optimistic Rollups protocol, as well as upgrades for its node software. V4 will also include new features, such as support for BLS signatures and upgraded bridges. The introduction of BLS signatures is set to reduce the L1 costs, while the new bridge will support general calls from L1 to L2 and L2 back to L1.
While Arbitrum’s open and permissionless testnet has been running for five months, the company said it would still keep the release candidate on the testnet before shipping it to the mainnet. This will enable both the company and the developers to get acquainted with the network and provide leverage if any problems should arise.
As another safety precaution, once the mainnet launches, Arbitrum will maintain the ability to upgrade and pause the system for a few months.
“Despite having done significant security diligence on our code, we believe this is necessary until we have some mainnet mileage behind us,” the Arbitrum team explained in the announcement.
To remain transparent about the network’s limitations, the initial release of the V4 will be called the “mainnet beta.” The moniker will be used until all control of the protocol is transferred to the community, Arbitrum said.
- Coinbase’s Base blockchain was made available to the public on Wednesday, featuring over 100 dApps and services as part of its ecosystem.
- In order to show its capabilities and promote its mainnet partners, Base has also launched an event called “Onchain Summer” that will allow users to mint exclusive NFTs on the network.
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- Coinbase’s protocol security team and over 100 external security researchers were involved with testing the upcoming layer 2 Base blockchain over the past six months.
- The project said it has now completed four out of five criteria for Base’s mainnet launch, with the remaining one being to demonstrate “testnet stability”.
- Coinbase has launched the testnet for its own layer-2 network Base, which was designed to be low-cost, open-source, and provide a developer-friendly environment.
- The exchange also revealed it will be joining Optimism as a core developer on the open-source “OP Stack”, which Base was built on top of.