Metis

Metis is an Ethereum Layer 2 scaling solution designed to address the blockchain's inherent challenges of speed, cost, and scalability. The company was co-founded in 2018 by Elena Sinelnikova, Kevin Liu, and Yuan Su. Sinelnikova, who serves as CEO, previously worked as a software developer for government and law enforcement and co-founded CryptoChicks, a non-profit focused on blockchain education for women, with Natalia Ameline, Vitalik Buterin's mother. This passion for making blockchain accessible drove the creation of Metis. Liu, the product lead, has a background in investment management and business analytics, holding an MBA and a CFA designation. CTO Yuan Su brings extensive software engineering and management experience from his long tenure at IBM and holds a Bachelor of Computer Science and an MBA.

The company's core product is a Layer 2 rollup platform that bundles transactions off-chain, processes them, and then settles them on the Ethereum mainnet, resulting in faster and cheaper operations. Metis is distinguished by its Hybrid Rollup architecture, which combines the benefits of Optimistic Rollups (EVM compatibility and speed) with Zero-Knowledge (ZK) proofs (enhanced security and faster finality). This approach aims to reduce the typical seven-day withdrawal finality of Optimistic Rollups to approximately four hours. A key component of its infrastructure is the Metis Virtual Machine (MVM), an EVM-compatible environment that allows developers to easily migrate existing Ethereum dApps. To further enhance efficiency and reduce costs, Metis utilizes decentralized off-chain storage.

Metis generates revenue through its native token, METIS, which is used for transaction fees on the network. The business model also involves a structure for Decentralized Autonomous Companies (DACs), a framework designed to facilitate the creation and management of decentralized businesses on its platform. The METIS token is integral to the ecosystem, used for staking by network validators (Sequencers) to secure the network, for governance participation, and as an incentive through the 'Builder Mining' program, which rewards DACs for transactions conducted on the network. To foster growth, the MetisDAO Foundation launched a 4.6 million METIS Ecosystem Development Fund (EDF) to provide grants for new projects, product development, and to incentivize participation in its decentralized sequencer pool.

A significant milestone for Metis is the implementation of a decentralized sequencer pool, a departure from the centralized sequencers used by many other Layer 2 solutions. This system allows multiple, permissionless nodes to sequence transactions, enhancing network security and censorship resistance. Sequencer nodes are required to stake METIS tokens to participate, and in return, they earn a share of transaction fees and additional METIS rewards. The platform supports a growing ecosystem of dApps, particularly in DeFi, gaming, and NFTs, and offers an NFT bridge for transferring assets between Metis and Ethereum.

Keywords: Metis, Layer 2, Ethereum scaling, Hybrid Rollup, Decentralized Sequencer, MetisDAO, Elena Sinelnikova, Kevin Liu, Yuan Su, METIS token, blockchain infrastructure, dApp development, DeFi, low transaction fees, EVM-compatible, Decentralized Autonomous Company, DAC, ZK proofs, Optimistic Rollup, NFT bridge, crypto staking, blockchain governance, Metis Virtual Machine, MVM, Web3 economy, crypto grants, Ecosystem Development Fund, blockchain scalability