The main development company behind the EOS blockchain has posted a $200k reward for anyone who can build an Ethereum virtual machine for it.
Ethereum has, by far, the most DApps (Decentralised Apps) and developers contributing to it. However, the “world’s computer” is also plagued by scalability problems.
To help solve its scalability issues, Ethereum is transitioning to a proof-of-stake consensus in addition to implementing features like sharding. “Phase Zero” of Ethereum 2.0 is expected to launch imminently but this is just the first step on a likely multi-year journey.
Newer blockchains like EOS, Tron, and Cardano, are hoping to steal Ethereum’s position by offering vastly improved scalability. “EOSIO can process smart contracts faster, reducing the impact of a significant roadblock for developers,” said Block.One.
Tron supports Ethereum’s Solidity contracts which makes the transition for developers easy, but EOS and Cardano are looking to simplify the transition from the largest smart contract platform to theirs.
The Block.One contract calls for the creation of an EOS smart contract capable of storing and invoking “Ethereum Virtual Machine (Solidity) smart contracts in an Ethereum-like environment.”
EOS was the biggest ICO (Initial Coin Offering) ever. Headed by blockchain entrepreneur Dan Larimer, EOS raised $4.1 billion at launch.
Armed with such a large wallet, Block.One has invested heavily in EOS’ development and held large events to promote its adoption. However, it’s still become known primarily for gaming and gambling apps.
Block.One recently caused disappointment when EOS’ first major app, a decentralised social network called Voice, was announced to be launching initially on a private version of EOS rather than public. Therefore, the first real killer app for EOS is yet to be found.
The same “lack of killer application” issue plagued Ethereum for some time – but the platform has recently witnessed huge uptake in decentralised finance (DeFi). Last week, Mati Greenspan, founder of Quantum Economics, tweeted that the amount of money locked in DeFi contracts is rapidly nearing $1 billion.
By introducing an Ethereum virtual machine, EOS has a chance at stealing a few developers and their DApps. In the long run, that’s likely to be worth a lot more to EOS than the $200k reward for whoever can provide one. It’ll be an uphill battle though, Ethereum has the hearts and minds of many developers for its core mission – and is aiming for a one million-strong legion of them.
Submissions for EOS’ challenge to build an Ethereum virtual machine should not contain changes to the EOS software and must contain documentation for querying EVM contract’s state and account balances. Accompanying materials must be in English or come with an English translation.
The end date for submissions is February 2021 but the challenge will be closed if a winner is announced before it expires. Testing of the submissions will occur approximately every three months.
You can find more details about the challenge and how to enter here.
(Image Credit: Block.One)
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