Recently researching blockchain, I found that scalability is indeed a tough problem. Especially now that various Rollup solutions have emerged, new troubles have come — these second-layer networks are all doing their own thing and cannot communicate well with each other. However, there is a project called Caldera that I find quite interesting; their proposed solution is indeed quite innovative.
Caldera's idea is very simple: why can't these Rollups connect freely like accessing the internet? They developed a technology called "Metalayer," which is like laying an invisible highway beneath all Caldera chains. I pondered for a while, and this design is indeed quite clever.
For example, if you buy an avatar on a chain dedicated to NFTs, you can directly use it to mortgage for a loan on another chain focused on DeFi, and the operation is as convenient as it is on a single chain. What surprised me the most is that their tests showed cross-chain transactions only take 3 seconds, and the transaction fees are particularly low. This is far superior to the current cumbersome cross-chain operations.
For developers, using Caldera is also very worry-free. Want to create your own chain? They have prepared various ready-made templates, whether it's Optimistic or ZK Rollup, you can set it up in just a few minutes. What's even more impressive is that you can set your own fee rules. For example, game developers can set item transactions to be free, with the project party covering the costs; this design really understands the pain points of developers.
Their token ERA is very important in the system. Not only is it a "pass" needed for cross-chain transactions, but it also relates to network management and security. As more people start using it, ERA might not just be an ordinary token; it could potentially become the "universal currency" for the entire network.
I think what makes Caldera most impressive is that it's not about creating a new chain, but rather finding a way to connect all chains together. This approach might be the right one — instead of always thinking that one chain can solve all problems, enabling different chains to cooperate is the correct path, just like the current internet is open and free. @Caldera Official $ERA
