🔗 Part 8/10: WalletConnect vs MetaMask Snaps & Account Abstraction
As the Web3 UX evolves, many people wonder:
👉 “Is WalletConnect still needed with MetaMask Snaps and Account Abstraction becoming the next big thing?”
Let’s break down how these technologies differ 👇
🧱 What is WalletConnect?
WalletConnect is a communication protocol that lets wallets and dApps talk to each other - securely and across devices, platforms, and chains.
✅ Wallet-agnostic
✅ Chain-agnostic
✅ Session-based
✅ Already integrated in 500+ wallets and dApps
It’s infrastructure - not an app, not a wallet. Think of it as the pipes of Web3.
🔌 What are MetaMask Snaps?
Snaps are plugins for MetaMask that extend its capabilities:
🔹 Add new chains
🔹 Improve security
🔹 Enable localization
🔹 Add custom transaction logic
⚠️ But Snaps only work within MetaMask. They don’t connect wallets and apps across the ecosystem like WalletConnect does.
🔓 What is Account Abstraction?
Account Abstraction (AA), especially via ERC-4337, reimagines wallets as smart contracts:
🔹 No seed phrases
🔹 Social recovery
🔹 Gasless transactions
🔹 Built-in automation
AA is an upgrade to how wallets behave, but it doesn’t handle app-to-wallet connectivity.
🤔 Are They Competing?
Not really. Each solves a different part of the Web3 puzzle:
🔹 Connects wallets and dApps
🔹 Works across wallets and chains
🔹 Open protocol, already widely used
⚙️ MetaMask Snaps
🔹 Extends MetaMask’s features
🔹 Only works inside MetaMask
🔹 Great for advanced functionality
🔐 Account Abstraction (AA)
🔹 Improves wallet UX
🔹 Enables gasless & secure smart wallets
🔹 Still in early adoption
So no - they’re not direct competitors.
They’re complementary technologies, and the best wallets of the future will likely use all three together.
💬 Up next: #WalletConnect - Key Partners and Ecosystem Growth
Tag someone who still thinks WalletConnect is “just a QR code” 👇