As decentralized finance (DeFi) continues to grow, demand for oracles, a key tool for connecting blockchains to real-world data, is surging.
Established providers like Chainlink are facing increasing competition from emerging players as decentralized applications (DApps) demand more efficient data delivery solutions.
Marcin Kaźmierczak, co-founder and chief operating officer of RedStone, discussed the trend of DeFi oracles in an exclusive interview with Cointelegraph.
Kaźmierczak said the oracle market is entering a new phase driven by innovation and multichain adoption, highlighting the rapid changes in DeFi and the potential overhaul of oracle providers.
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Multichain ecosystem expansion
Kaźmierczak pointed out that the emergence of layer 2 networks, such as Open Network (TON) and Starknet, and non-Ethereum virtual machine (EVM) chains have revealed the scalability limitations of traditional oracle designs.
“When Chainlink was created, the design was not optimized for multichain delivery because there was no such thing as L2 or DeFi across multiple L1s.”
Kaźmierczak said each new network presents “big dependencies and technological costs” that were not initially acceptable, but that these demands have revealed new “challengers.”
The RedStone co-founder described these new networks as “much more efficient at supporting new ecosystems” and include networks such as Berachain, Unichain (Uniswap’s L2 network), and Ink (Kraken’s L2 network).
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Decentralized without over-engineering
The question of how oracles should be decentralized is an ongoing topic of discussion, with some experts, such as Flare Network co-founder Hugo Philion, advocating for embedding oracles directly into the chain.
Kaźmierczak expressed concern about the embedding approach, which “stifles innovation at the base layer and locks protocols into specific designs.”
He argued that a better, more efficient path could be created by leveraging staking technology and spreading security risks while allowing oracles to remain independent and adapt to technological changes.
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Outlook for Oracle
While Kaźmierczak acknowledged that Chainlink remains a powerful and growing force in the industry, he reiterated that the rapidly changing nature of DeFi leaves room for challengers.
“We’re not so obsessed with being number one because we deliver value to our customers and we continue to grow,” he said, adding that the Oracle provider’s Total Value of Security (TVS) “has now grown 1,250% year-on-year.” Yes. “It amounts to $6.3 billion.”
With cryptocurrency-friendly policies expected under U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s incoming administration, the RedStone co-founder told Cointelegraph that he expects “a wave of bullishness across DeFi platforms.”
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