Hello everyone, I view the blockchain world as a city under construction: Layer 1 is the foundation, Layer 2 is the skyscrapers, and dApps are the interiors. However, the problem is that many L2s today resemble flashy buildings, built quickly to attract tenants by displaying “promotional” signs (token incentives), but lack sustainability. Linea, the Layer 2 zkEVM from ConsenSys, is different. It is like an architectural project designed with the goal of longevity, prioritizing neutrality and trust over chasing short-term trends. From a design perspective, I will share how Linea builds the “infrastructure blueprint” for Ethereum, based on my experience working with the dev team on Linea and data from DeFiLlama, Dune Analytics (TVL Linea ~1.2 billion USD in October 2025).
First, let's talk about the 'philosophical design' of Linea – a project balancing between business and decentralization. ConsenSys, the company behind MetaMask and Infura, is a 'major investor' with significant funding from VCs like JP Morgan. But Ethereum is a 'public land' – no one owns it, open to all. Linea is envisioned as a 'bridge' connecting these two worlds: a fully Ethereum-compatible zkEVM, running Solidity smart contracts without modifications, and posting zk proofs on L1 to inherit security. When designing the UI for a lending dApp on the Linea testnet back in 2024, I found it great: gas fees only 0.01 USD/tx, TPS reached 6k (according to the Vortex 2.0 update in May 2025), and latency under 200ms for proof generation – 30% faster than Polygon zkEVM. But what impressed me was that Linea is not in a hurry to 'decorate glamorously' with tokens. According to a tweet from Declan Fox (Head of Linea), the TGE is postponed to Q3/2025, with 85% of the supply allocated for the ecosystem (75% Linea Consortium, 10% airdrop). This is like an architect refusing to install neon lights for show, focusing instead on the foundation and structure. Regarding 'infrastructure', Linea is designed to create 'sustainable trust' – like a building that can withstand storms. Many L2s choose to 'build fast, break fast': pumping token incentives to attract TVL, but when the rewards run out, users withdraw their capital. Linea takes the approach of 'building slowly and surely'. They tie all transactions to Ethereum security: batch tx off-chain, zk proofs verify on L1, ensuring censorship resistance. In July 2025, Linea launched an ETH burn mechanism – 20% of net fees (paid in ETH) are burned, the first time an L2 has done this, reducing ETH supply and increasing L1 value. I calculated from the testnet: a tx swap on SyncSwap (native Linea DEX) burns ~0.0001 ETH, and yield from bridged ETH staking (via EigenCloud) reaches 4-5% APY. For users, the experience is smooth: I designed the flow for an NFT dApp on Linea, integrated with MetaMask, and users just need to click 'deposit ETH' to auto stake, no need to bridge wrapped tokens. Linea's TVL increased by 499% YoY, reaching 412M USD at the beginning of 2025 (DeFiLlama), more stable than Base (20% drop post-airdrop). The 'neutral material' of Linea is an architectural highlight. They don’t use 'exclusive bricks': zkEVM deterministic, not favoring any tool, supporting WalletConnect, Coinbase Wallet alongside MetaMask. They don't force developers into the ConsenSys ecosystem; I deployed a smart contract on Linea without needing Infura RPC, using free public nodes. Governance is also neutral: Linea Association (Swiss NGO, launched in November 2024) manages decentralization, with multi-layer voting starting in Q1/2025. I once provided feedback on the Linea forum, suggesting UX improvements for Verax Attestation (NFT IP ownership), and the team responded quickly – unlike some L2s that have centralized sequencers forever. By the end of 2025, Linea's sequencer will be multi-party PoS, reducing single points of failure. According to Dune Analytics, Linea has 317k daily active users (up 29% YoY), with over 350 dApps: DeFi (Aave, Morpho), NFT (Lamina1 for creator-owned media), gaming (Status Network gasless L2). I designed a dashboard for a Morpho vault on Linea: LLTV ratios clearly displayed, audit trail via zk proofs, suitable for institutional compliance. From a design perspective in Vietnam, Linea is an 'open project' for individual users. Gas is 15-20x cheaper compared to the ETH mainnet (Alpha v2 2025 cuts an additional 66%), suitable for emerging markets. The Vietnamese DeFi Telegram group (5k members) I joined is currently farming the Linea Ignition program (160M LINEA reward starting in September 2025). Tx confirmation takes 7 seconds, rare outages (only once in September 2025, fixed quickly). With TradFi, SWIFT is testing tokenized deposits on Linea (in October 2025) due to its neutral infrastructure, not tied to token volatility. Linea's TVL reached 2.3B USD by the end of 2025 (CCN report), thanks to EVM compatibility and composability: devs can migrate dApps without rewriting, and users swap cross-L2 via the Across bridge at 90% lower costs. I see Linea's UX flow as a banking app: tap, confirm, done – but still decentralized.
Finally, Linea is like an architectural work that doesn't need a 'billboard advertisement'. They don't win through marketing, but through durability: decentralized sequencer by the end of 2025, native ETH yield for all L2s on the stack. I believe when ETH ETFs explode, Linea will be the 'foundation' for on-chain capital markets. If you're a designer or developer, try the Linea devnet – faucet free, UX-friendly docs. @Linea.eth #Linea $LINEA
