Avail and StarkWare to Reduce Costs for Madara Appchains with Web 3.0

Data Availability on Madara Networks

Starknet-based Madara networks now have an option for data availability with the introduction of Avail, as announced on Dec. 20. This new feature is expected to reduce data publishing costs by up to 90% when compared with Ethereum, without requiring a permissioned solution.

Madara networks are referred to as “Layer 3s” because they publish zero-knowledge validity proofs to Starknet, which is a layer 2 of Ethereum. These networks are designed with a decentralized sequencer to ensure that transactions cannot be censored. Popular examples of these custom networks include Mangata Finance, Kakachain, Tobi and Alakazam.

Avail is a network designed to handle data availability for the Ethereum ecosystem. When an Ethereum layer-2 uses Avail for data availability, it publishes validity proofs to Ethereum, but stores the compressed transaction data on Avail, which reduces the cost of transactions. This type of network is called a “validum”, which is different from a “rollup” that has higher transaction fees but publishes all data to Ethereum.

Prior to the implementation of Avail, Madara networks could use a Data Availability Committee (DAC) instead of Ethereum for data availability, which would also reduce transaction costs. A DAC is a whitelisted group of organizations trusted to provide this service.

Data Availability with Avail and Polygon

Madara networks now have the option to use Avail, a decentralized blockchain, as a storage solution for compressed data instead of a DAC. This could be attractive to developers who want to avoid relying on a trusted group of parties. Avail is working towards supporting 1,000 external validators, as stated by the company.

DACs were created in the early days of zero-knowledge proof technology, but Daniel Goldman from Offchain Labs has argued that they should be phased out in the long run. He believes they are “awkward” and “ultimately fruitless” because they could potentially lead to a malicious committee freezing all funds on the chain indefinitely.

Avail was initially developed by Polygon Labs in 2021, but was then spun off as a separate project. In July, it launched a testnet bridge to Ethereum. Avail is just one of the many blockchain networks that focus on data availability, with Celestia – which recently integrated with Polygon CDK – being another example.