Taiko enables permissionless sequencing and proving after mainnet rollout

Ethereum Layer 2 Taiko has enabled permissionless sequencing and proving following its mainnet rollout and token launch — claiming to become the first rollup to do so.

Permissionless sequencing allows anyone to sequence Taiko blocks in a decentralized way, the team said, in contrast to other Ethereum rollups that currently rely on centralized sequencers to order their blocks, introducing various risks.

In a process known as based sequencing, block ordering for Taiko is carried out by Ethereum mainnet validators and block builders, the project says.

“This type of block ordering, created by Ethereum researcher Justin Drake, inherits liveness and security guarantees from Ethereum base layer,” Taiko said.

In terms of permissionless proving, participants can now spin up a Taiko node and prover to prove blocks and earn token rewards.

“We’re super excited to become the first Ethereum rollup that opened up block sequencing to everyone,” Taiko co-founder and CEO Daniel Wang said. “We firmly believe that based sequencing, together with permissionless proving, is how all rollups should work. Having permissionless and decentralized sequencing and proving is an important step in our decentralization path but this is just the beginning.”

Decentralizing Layer 2 networks

While rollups are a promising scaling solution for Ethereum, helping to increase transaction throughput and reduce fees — especially following Ethereum’s Dencun upgrade in March — they introduce elements of centralization, such as relying on sequencers and provers controlled by the projects’ teams who also retain any revenue the sequencer generates.

Taiko went live on mainnet last week following extensive development that started in 2022 and included seven testnets, with Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin proposing the inaugural block.

The mainnet was followed by an airdrop for its community members. The project has initially distributed 5% of its 1 billion token supply in what it describes as a “genesis airdrop.” The team has also earmarked 10% for the upcoming Trailblazer airdrop, which is distinct from the genesis airdrop.

The allocation of Taiko’s total token supply also includes 48.5% reserved for key stakeholders — 20% for Taiko Labs and the core team, 16.88% for Taiko Foundation reserves, and 11.62% for investors. Additionally, the DAO Treasury will hold 20% of the tokens. 

The Layer 2 project also plans to launch a DAO later in the year to progressively transfer protocol control to its community.

Since its inception in 2022, Taiko has raised $37 million across two funding rounds.