Solana Co-Founder Proposes Meta Blockchain for Lower Data Costs

Solana co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko has proposed the creation of a "meta blockchain" aimed at reducing data availability (DA) costs and enhancing interoperability across various blockchain networks. Yakovenko outlined his vision in a May 12 post, suggesting that this meta blockchain would not function as an independent layer but rather as an aggregator. Its primary role would be to collect and organize data from multiple chains under a unified transaction ordering system.

The core concept involves referencing the latest block headers from each participating chain, enabling a shared and deterministic method for aligning transactions. Yakovenko explained that this approach would allow for a meta transaction on Solana to include recent blocks from other chains like Ethereum and Celestia. This method would minimize uncertainty in transaction sequencing and enable users to leverage the most cost-effective data availability solutions.

Yakovenko emphasized that a fixed rule for merging transactions would ensure consistency across the system. This model could reduce the reliance on centralized sequencers, which are often seen as single points of failure in many rollup ecosystems. He envisioned an ideal system where a protocol automatically merges data from all connected chains without the need for an external coordinator. Yakovenko stated, "A lame version of this relies on an external sequencer. I think the cooler version is just a merge rule that reads all the chains. So users can send txs anywhere."

While the proposal has garnered interest, its practicality has been questioned. Celestia COO Nick White argued that similar proposals, known as DA multiplexers, have long been theoretical but rarely implemented. White noted that such models increase operational complexity because rollups need to run nodes for each DA layer. Additionally, managing fork-choice rules across multiple chains would significantly raise overhead, offering limited benefits in return.

Despite the skepticism, Yakovenko remains optimistic that affordable and accessible data availability will lower the cost of other on-chain activities. He believes that making data availability cheap allows for making everything else cheap, as bandwidth is the irreducible bottleneck. Yakovenko's proposal highlights the ongoing efforts to improve interoperability and reduce costs within the blockchain ecosystem, although its feasibility remains a topic of debate.