Rune Christensen, the chief executive officer and co-founder of MakerDAO, announced plans to consider Solana’s codebase as the groundwork for NewChain, Maker’s forthcoming standalone blockchain.
This revelation came during a discussion where Christensen extensively outlined the potential synergies between MakerDAO’s ambitious Endgame project and Solana’s technological prowess.
MakerDAO Explores Forking Solana
NewChain is part of MakerDAO’s long-term strategic project known as Endgame. Christensen underscored its importance by pointing out that NewChain will be the backbone of Maker Protocol and its SubDAOs.
Once complete, the new blockchain aims to bolster system security and operational efficiency significantly.
“The last phase of Endgame is the launch of a native blockchain for Maker with the codename NewChain. It will make the ecosystem more secure and efficient. After some research, I believe the Solana codebase should be considered as the basis for NewChain,” Christensen stated.
Unlike the layers of patches and updates of older blockchains, NewChain will have the advantage of a clean slate. Therefore, it can gracefully recover from governance attacks or technical mishaps through hard forks.
According to Christensen, it aims to eliminate the accrued technical debt haunting Maker Protocol for eight years.
Why Solana and Not Other Chains?
Three major reasons justify the choice of Solana as a potential cornerstone:
- First, Solana’s codebase is designed for the high efficiency and singular focus that NewChain requires. It benefits from the hindsight of blockchain technology’s evolution, solving the bottlenecks and challenges that earlier blockchains failed to address.
- Second, despite past hurdles such as the FTX blowup, Solana has displayed remarkable resilience, emerging stronger with a thriving developer community. This tenacity lowers the costs for development and maintenance while it ensures a stable pool of high-quality talent.
- Third, Solana’s adaptability for specialized needs has already been proven through projects like Pyth, which operates its backend on a modified version of Solana.
Christensen envisions a future where Maker and Solana cultivate a symbiotic relationship. By forking Solana, Maker can access an expansive pool of developer talent, enriching the ecosystem while benefiting from it simultaneously.
Furthermore, Christensen advocates the establishment of a “Two-Stage Gravity Bridge” between NewChain, Solana, and Ethereum. Such a bridge would extend Solana’s native DeFi features and capital and stitch them together. The goal is to strengthen the security and network effect across the entire multichain economy.
Although Solana fits the bill perfectly, Christensen mentioned Cosmos as another contender, noting its large and highly skilled developer community.
Still, Cosmos lacks a centralized foundation, and its architecture does not prioritize efficiency at its core. This inherent difference could result in higher maintenance costs, making Solana more appealing to MakerDAO’s specific needs.
NewChain, estimated to be at least three years in the making, signals MakerDAO’s commitment to staying ahead of the curve. By aligning with Solana, MakerDAO has identified a powerful ally and set a precedent for other blockchain projects.
