Base Exits Optimism Superchain

- Base was launched by the cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase in August 2023 to provide its 110 million verified users with access to on-chain applications. It was built using Optimism's OP Stack, an open-source framework for creating Layer 2 blockchains. - The move to a custom stack is intended to double the pace of network upgrades from approximately three to six per year. Base's engineering team aims to reduce the complexity of coordinating with multiple external teams and codebases that were part of the OP Stack. - Base's new unified stack, managed in a single repository called `base/base`, will utilize components like the Rust-based Ethereum client Reth to enhance performance. While separating from the OP Stack, Base will remain a client of OP Labs for enterprise support. - The Optimism Superchain is a project designed to create an interoperable network of Layer 2 chains that share bridging, governance, and communication layers. Base's departure is a significant blow, as it was the largest chain in the ecosystem, accounting for a substantial portion of the revenue. - The Ethereum Pectra upgrade's EIP-7702 allows regular user accounts (Externally Owned Accounts) to temporarily function like smart contracts. This enables features like bundling multiple actions into a single transaction and paying for gas fees with tokens other than ETH. - Pectra's blob throughput boost was achieved by doubling the target number of data "blobs" per block from three to six. This increase in data capacity for Layer 2 rollups is designed to significantly lower transaction fees and support a growing user base without congesting the main Ethereum network. - The increase of the maximum staking balance for an Ethereum validator from 32 ETH to 2,048 ETH simplifies operations for larger stakers and allows solo stakers to compound their rewards within a single validator. The minimum staking requirement remains 32 ETH.