- Astar zkEVM is working to strengthen the ecosystem growth.
- As part of this effort, the network has partnered with Sequence to launch a product.
- The network is also offering subsidies to further incentivize developers.
Astar zkEVM launched on March 6 as the first Ethereum Layer 2 connected to Polygon’s AggLayer and has since been working to solidify its position as a leading Layer 2. As part of this effort, the project made the following announcement just 24 hours after launch: Our partnership with Pyth Network provides secure, real-time data to dApps.
The project announced a new product in collaboration with Sequence, a Web3 developer-focused infrastructure provider, to strengthen its ecosystem growth.
Astar zkEVM unlocks “easy mode” for developers
On Monday, May 20, Astar zkEVM announced the launch of Astar Studio, a platform that aims to provide all the tools Astar zkEVM developers need in one place. Astar zkEVM suggested that the platform built in partnership with Sequence will allow developers to focus more on the end product and user experience rather than the complexities of Web3. With Astar Studio, the team plans to strengthen the ecosystem by attracting and hosting higher quality applications that are product-market fit, ultimately driving greater adoption.
According to a press statement, Astar Studio “will serve as the official Astar zkEVM ‘developer console’, putting innovation and control directly in the hands of developers.” Astar Studio’s features include a customizable UI kit, gas sponsorship mechanism, and SDKs for Unity, Unreal Engine, and mobile.
Commenting on the product launch, Astar Network CTO Shaun Wang claimed that Astar Studio has unlocked an “easy mode” for dApp builders.
"The integration with Sequence is going to be very beneficial for the developers building on Astar zkEVM. By combining Astar zkEVM with Sequence's development platform, we're empowering developers to build next-generation web3 dApps in easy mode."
Meanwhile, as an added incentive, Astar zkEVM also offers grants to developers interested in Astar Studio.
$200,000 in grant funding
Astar zkEVM and Sequence said they would be offering a “special Astar Studio Credit grant” of up to $200,000. As the team explains, developers can use these credits for any tool within the development platform.
According to the grant application form, selection criteria include whether the project is ongoing and the number of active users.
With the product launch, Astar zkEVM will hope to slow the decline in activity experienced on its network over the past few days. sugar Asta zkEVM ExplorerDaily active accounts fell from a peak of 8,251 on May 17 to 4,468 on May 19, and new transactions on the network have reached similar idle levels in recent weeks, falling below 50,000 on May 19.
On the flip side
- There is no guarantee that Astar Studio will be widely adopted.
- Astar zkEVM faces stiff competition in the gaming space from Immutable X and Polygon itself.
Why This Matters
For relatively new cryptocurrency projects like Astar zkEVM, acquiring and retaining users can be a daunting task. The first step to solving this problem is usually attracting projects that have product-market fit. Astar Studio is the solution that Astar zkEVM turned to solve this very problem.
For more information about Astar zkEVM, please read:
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