Momentum is building in the Mina ecosystem as we head towards the upcoming mainnet upgrade. At the end of 2023, Electric Capital reported that the Mina ecosystem saw a 112% increase in full-time developers (vs. an industry average loss of 15%), making Mina the second fastest growing ecosystem by full-time developers. Recent reports from ‘The State of ZK’ also highlighted that o1js, a TypeScript library used for Mina’s zero knowledge (ZK) applications, is gaining ground, becoming the third most downloaded zkDSL in the space, just behind Circom.
With the Berkeley upgrade on track to be completed in early June, developer growth is primed to continue its upward trajectory. The major upgrade will unlock a series of new use cases thanks to the enormous advantage that ZK technology offers. Soon, smart contracts will be able to be executed off-chain, allowing builders to run unlimited computation – without any gas fees! This lays the foundations for more advanced, infinitely scalable apps with built-in privacy features. In other words, if dApps were V1, then zkApps are V2.
The Berkeley upgrade isn’t just promising for zkApps; it’s a game-changer for crucial crypto infrastructure as well. This upgrade will pave the way for essential developments including the Mina state-proof bridge to Ethereum, decentralized exchanges (DEXs), and layer two blockchains (L2s). It’s important to note that while these projects won’t immediately be live after upgrade, the upgrade sets the stage for their accelerated development, unlocking unprecedented potential for the ecosystem.
Bridges
Progress is underway on the bridge front, with three bridges in development. Sotatek is working on a two-way token bridge between Mina and Ethereum while Lambda Class and =nil; Foundation are working on Mina state-proof bridges to Ethereum. These bridges will allow builders to leverage Mina’s unique ZK properties while tapping into Ethereum’s vast user base. Paima Studios, a renowned Web3 gaming engine, is already planning to utilize the bridge alongside Zeko, one of Mina’s L2 solutions, to pioneer the first Massively Multiplayer Online (MMO) ZK game.
Layer Two Blockchains (L2s)
Mina’s current array of L2 scaling solutions includes both Protokit and Zeko, each playing a crucial role in enhancing the platform’s scalability and developer experience. Protokit introduces an appchain framework, providing Solidity developers with a familiar development experience on Mina. Meanwhile, Zeko has recently concluded a fundraising round, promising impressive speed improvements to help scale the Mina L1. Together, these solutions contribute to Mina’s robust ecosystem, offering developers diverse avenues for building
Decentralized Exchanges (DEXs)
Two DEXs are also on the way, Kaupang and Lumina. ZK DEXs enable both permissioned and private DEXs. This offering is unprecedented because it means DEXs could be able to meet regulatory compliance requirements, such as KYC checks, without requiring its users to disclose their identity or other sensitive personal data. While these seem like simple things, they are key to bootstrapping Mina’s ecosystem and its unique ZK innovation is needed to onboard the next million users to Web3.
And Beyond…
In case you missed it, Mina is also integrating with Celestia thanks to Geometry Research’s work on a Groth16 verifier facilitating compatibility between other blockchains. The integration of Celestia’s modular DA layer on the Mina Protocol reinforces Mina’s role in the modular movement, enables higher throughput, and allows developers to verify transactions natively.
How is this possible? Mina is ZK to its core; everything is recursively proven. Its elegant design promotes the highest decentralization, modularity, and security levels.
Join over 220,000 community members and over 50 projects in building the future of ZK with Mina.
About Mina Protocol
Mina is the world’s lightest blockchain, powered by participants. Rather than apply brute computing force, Mina uses advanced cryptography and recursive zk-SNARKs to design an entire blockchain that is about 22kb, the size of a couple of tweets. It is the first layer-1 to enable efficient implementation and easy programmability of zero knowledge smart contracts (zkApps). With its unique privacy features and ability to connect to any website, Mina is building a private gateway between the real world and crypto—and the secure, democratic future we all deserve.
