How Snapshot Revolutionizes Governance with New Starknet-Powered Protocol

• Snapshot has taken a stab at on-chain voting amid existing challenges.
• At the core of Snapshot’s solution are several Starknet innovations.
• The protocol will not be limited to Starknet alone.

For all its promise, complexity and scaling woes have served as obstacles to some of blockchain technology’s core promises, including fully on-chain governance. Limited customization and high fees have made it largely impractical until now.

Leveraging technological innovations from Ethereum Layer 2 developer StarkWare, Snapshot, the leading off-chain voting platform used by most DAOs , now claims to have cracked the on-chain governance puzzle. The team has launched a protocol that claims to combine the verifiability and security of on-chain voting with the minimal fees, modularity, and ease of use of its off-chain platform.

Snapshot Launches Snapshot X

Snapshot has taken a stab at on-chain voting amid existing challenges. On Monday, September 9, Snapshot announced the launch of Snapshot X , an on-chain voting protocol on the StarkWare-developed Starknet.

Snapshot tipped the new protocol to lead to a 10 to 50-times cost reduction in on-chain voting. At the same time, the protocol will also reduce the cost of making proposals or updating DAO settings by up to 200 times. Snapshot tipped the protocol to save these costs and leverage Ethereum’s security while still preserving the familiar, easy-to-use interface and modularity of the off-chain Snapshot solution most DAOs have come to rely on.

For starters, Snapshot X will still be accessible to users via their preferred EVM wallet, just like the off-chain platform. At the same time, DAOs can still configure the platform to suit their voting, proposal validation, and proposal execution strategies.

Beyond these, Snapshot X will also allow voting with various token standards, including NFTs . Furthermore, the protocol unlocks gasless voting, allowing DAOs to cover gas costs for community members.

So, how exactly does Snapshot X achieve all of this?

Snapshot X’s Secret Sauce

At the core of Snapshot X’s functionalities are storage proofs, allowing users to prove they have assets across several blockchains. As highlighted by Snapshot, this feature allows users to prove their asset holdings on Layer 1 for voting without having to bridge the assets to the Layer 2 chain, in this case, Starknet. As explained, this feature significantly reduces computation costs.

At the same time, Snapshot X uses a meta-transaction relayer called Mana, which allows users to vote with message signatures on Ethereum. These signatures are broadcast to Starknet without users having to create new wallets.

A Governance Breakthrough?

Before now, some DAOs used Snapshot only for temperature check votes while integrating other solutions for on-chain voting. With the launch of Snapshot X, developers now argue that Snapshot has become “an all-in-one solution for voting and execution,” which will significantly simplify governance processes. 

“With the addition of Snapshot X, Snapshot is now an all-in-one solution for voting and execution. Pairing that together with Snapshot v2’s new Discussions integration and Delegation dashboard, it’s now possible to unite DAO governance activities on one popular platform, making life a little easier for DAO citizens,” Snapshot Labs wrote.

Meanwhile, access to the Snapshot X platform will not be limited to only DAOs on Ethereum and Starknet. According to the team, the protocol will be available to all EVM chains, including Optimism , Polygon , and Arbitrum .

Snapshot X will power its first on-chain vote this week as Starknet intends to leverage the protocol to let users decide the minting mechanism for STRK tokens as part of plans to introduce staking. The vote will take place from September 10 to September 13.

On the Flipside 

• Snapshot X is still new and has yet to be battle-tested.

Why This Matters

On-chain governance promises greater security, verifiability, and trustless execution. However, high costs and blockchain complexities have made it impractical for most communities seeking to maximize participation. As such, Snapshot X promises to be a game changer.

Read this for more on Starknet:
Starknet Eyes STRK Staking Launch Through Community Vote

A sudden spike in a key Ethereum metric has sparked hopes of a rebound. Find out more:
Ethereum Network Growth Surges to 4-Month High: Can ETH Rebound?