Original author: Larissa
Following the Ethereum Community Conference (ETHCC), Lens Protocol made headlines with the announcement of its latest upgrade, Lens V2. This highly anticipated release includes two revolutionary upgrades. The first upgrade, Open Actions, introduces a groundbreaking feature that enables users and developers to seamlessly integrate external smart contract actions into Lens publications. The second enhancement is a major integration with ERC 6551, which revolutionizes identity management by allowing users to use NFTs as their unique identities, tying all account activity within the Lens ecosystem. Multiple wallet addresses can now be linked through a single NFT, simplifying the user experience.
Lens and its competitors
Lens Protocol has established itself as the leading SocialFi platform on Ethereum. Lens performs well in terms of growth and user engagement compared to its competitors. Fracaster, a social contract with a similar social graph concept, currently has 17,286 active accounts, while Lens Protocol has a staggering 119,241 active accounts, significantly more than its competitors.
While another competitor, Cyberconnect, has over 296,342 accounts, Lens Protocol has access controls in place, so a direct comparison is less meaningful. Although Cyberconnect has a larger user base, Lens Protocol outperforms in terms of total transaction volume with 21, 931, 943 transactions compared to Cyberconnect’s 16, 249, 274 total transactions.
Lens Protocol’s ecosystem not only attracts a larger user base, but also has higher levels of user activity compared to other social contract platforms, reflecting Lens Protocol’s efforts to create a vibrant and thriving community within its decentralized ecosystem. Community effects. However, Lens Protocol is not satisfied with the present and is still upgrading to the next stage.
Lens Ambitious Moves
1) Momoka: Len’s L3
In April, Lens launched MOMOKA, an innovative Optimistic L3 scaling solution designed to take Polygon transactions off-chain to achieve unparalleled scalability while reducing transaction costs. Unlike the traditional rollup process where L2 sends transactions to L1, Momoka takes a different approach. It creates transactions and obtains signatures from the wallet, but instead of broadcasting these transactions directly on the blockchain, it generates data availability (DA) metadata using transaction signatures and typed data, treating them as transactions themselves. This metadata transaction is then sent to the dedicated DA layer.
Additionally, Momoka provides indexing support, enabling node operators to seamlessly stream and index Lens data without relying on third-party infrastructure. The introduction of Momoka enables users to selectively store data on Polygon, and publications that do not require a strong trustless execution layer can choose not to use EVM state. As such, Momoka offers users the flexibility to tailor their trading methods to their specific needs within the Lens ecosystem. The launch of Momoka offers users the possibility to reduce their reliance on Polygon services to an extent, potentially leading Lens to move to a Layer 1 chain and become part of a modular blockchain approach.
2) Integrate with ERC 6551
ERC 6551 allows NFT to create Token Bound Accounts (TBA), which means that NFT can be used as a wallet address or an account on the chain, truly realizing the function of NFT as a wallet. Additionally, ERC-6551 will support the creation of smart contract wallet accounts for current ERC-721 NFTs, using the NFT as an on-chain identity wallet. Under this NFT account, multiple wallet addresses, held NFTs, and ERC-20 tokens can be included, making the NFT a true representation of an on-chain identity account.
From Lens’ perspective, integrating with ERC-6551 and establishing rules for NFTs using Lens is a strategic move. Currently, Lens requires users to own an NFT of Lens to access its services, and trading an NFT of Lens will result in the loss of all account activity and transactions associated with it. By implementing ERC-6551, Lens simplifies the use of its NFTs and adds an element of identity, creating a sense of belonging for users.
Lens believes that the current integration with ERC-6551 not only simplifies the use of NFTs, but also introduces the concept of identity and improves the overall user experience. This innovative approach to integrating identity into NFTs creates a deeper connection between users and the platform.
In Lens’ closed beta, users have created and accumulated more than 3.4 million NFTs, not just simple profile pictures or digital assets. Now, these NFTs have the potential to generate new uses in the identity space, providing a fresh and exciting perspective that may generate interest in the market.
Star Projects of Lens Protocol
Currently, there are over 134 verified and demonstrated apps thriving in the Lens ecosystem. This diverse range of successful applications has aroused great interest and support from various communities and developers, and they are full of expectations for the future of Lens Protocol.
1) Orb
Orb is a decentralized social media platform supporting mobile and desktop. In all applications, we trust Orb. Orb is a decentralized social app that stands out on Lens not only for its UI/UX, but also for its emphasis on community focus. We believe that an engaging and unique community will be the most unique feature of Web3 social applications and will help attract Web2 users from platforms such as Twitter. Orb not only focuses on engaging the diverse community from Web3, but also makes efforts to create a unique user experience.
2) Lenster
Lenster is an innovative and groundbreaking decentralized social media application firmly rooted in the principles of permissionless interaction. Powered by the powerful Lens Protocol, Lenster is redefining the digital social space by introducing a new paradigm of user engagement. On this innovative platform, users have unprecedented ability to create and reward posts that resonate deeply with the wider community.
3) Phaver
Phaver is a pioneer in the field of decentralized social media platforms, leveraging the cutting-edge capabilities of Lens technology. As an early adopter of this revolutionary paradigm, Phaver not only redefines the way users interact with digital communities, but also introduces an innovative incentive dimension through its unique reward token system.
Limitations of the Lens protocol
The submitter is responsible for validating transaction data and constructing the data for submission to Arweave, similar to the L2 sequencer. However, it is not decentralized, and the decision-making power of submitters belongs to the official Lens team.
Lens chooses not to follow the traditional L2 solution and instead rolls up and sends the data to the DA layer. This decision was made because as a massive application, Lens data will continue to grow and become complex, unlike financial data that only requires the final result. Sending data to the DA layer to be handled by Arweave is a temporary solution, not a long-term scaling solution.
Although Lens is considered one of the most mature protocols, with a thriving ecosystem and a dedicated team dedicated to building and improving the user experience, it currently attracts primarily blockchain users. Lens struggles to attract new users. However, some non-blockchain social contracts have successfully attracted large numbers of new users through low entry barriers and smooth user experiences.
In summary, the Lens Protocol stands out from the competition with its inherent technical advantages rooted in a strong commitment to decentralization. While well-known social protocols like Nostr and Mastodon have amassed large numbers of users without relying on blockchain technology, the Lens protocol is unique in its true support for decentralization. Nostr’s case highlights the importance of decentralized architecture, which eliminates the need for users to have to deal with complex blockchain concepts. Nostrs elegant system, including clients and relays, provides users with an environment for easy access to private and public keys, creating conditions for scaling and creating diverse applications.
However, the recent wave of innovation created by visionary leaders like Vitalik and Elon on Twitter may recalibrate the preferences of native Web3 users, prompting them to explore alternative promising social protocols. In this changing landscape, the Lens protocol faces the challenge of maintaining its relevance and appeal in a highly competitive environment.
We look forward to watching Lens stand out in the competitive social circuit!
