September 30, 2024
By Tsering Namgyal
Blockwind.news editor-in-chief Tsering Namgyal spoke to Igor Barinov. Blockscout is an open-source block explorer available for all EVM (Ethereum Virtual Machine) based chains. Live on over 600 networks, Blockscout features a robust interface for searching blocks, transactions, accounts, and tokens, and provides tooling for developers including smart contract verification and access to a suite of optimized APIs. The new DAppscout marketplace built into Blockscout offers a secure environment for decentralized app discovery, exploration, and interaction.
Q1. Block explorers provide valuable services for anyone who needs up-to-date and reliable blockchain data, but high fees and lack of customizability have made many block explorers inaccessible to chains. To counter this, Blockscout is on a mission to redefine the role of the block explorer, transforming the existing paradigm with its open-source and universally accessible tooling. How do you manage to do this?
A: Block explorers have long been a staple tool for the web3 ecosystem – giving developers, analysts, and end users alike the visibility they need into on-chain activity and transactions of interest. Blockscout’s open source EVM explorer and tools enable nascent projects to host their own explorer, providing an alternative to expensive Explorer-as-a-Service offerings and offsetting the costs of building an explorer from scratch. This is critical tooling in a modular, multichain world where new networks and appchains can give their users insights into network activity right away.
Where there were once only a few chains, there are now many variations, from Layer 2s to roll-ups, each with variations in users and usage. This brings about a requirement for a more functional and nimble class of explorers; an explorer that can efficiently provide advanced views and features. Open-source explorers are particularly important in this scenario, as they can be customized by anyone, and any chain can start-up and use an open-source explorer as soon as their chain is operational.
As one of the few open-source players, we offer unmatched transparency and accessibility that serves everyone in the crypto space, from developers to everyday users. We are on the way to becoming the main platform for verifying all information on blockchains and exploring dApps in a safe way.
With coverage of more than 600 networks to date and growing, Blockscout provides a full-featured product suite for exploring, confirming, and inspecting transactions, including robust developer tooling and a user-friendly portal for consumers and applications.
In August 2024, Blockscout closed a $3M seed funding round led by crypto investment firm, 1kx. Blockscout plans to use the funding to further build out the product suite and improve user experience, such as the integration of social elements and AI-enabled tooling directly into the dashboard. It will also be used to make the deployment of the Explorer-as-a-Service easier, support new projects looking for EAAS customization, and deepen involvement with existing chains, further contributing to our mission of bringing key customizable data to those who need it, be they developers or end-users.
Q2. Etherum’s next upgrade, Pectra. Can you comment on the impact of the upgrade on users, developers, and the overall network?
A: The Pectra upgrade’s improvements of Ethereum across various dimensions will impact users, developers, and the overall network. From making the network more accessible, secure and user-friendly; to enhancing account abstraction, validator operations, and network performance.
Pectra will pave the way for future scalability upgrades, including “Verkle trees” and efficient data handling. Validator stake limits will be increased, staking withdrawals will become more flexible and smart contract deployment will be more streamlined.
As a result, Ethereum will be better equipped to serve a wider range of use cases and user requirements, enabling regular Ethereum accounts to be more programmable, Layer 2 solutions to be more affordable, smart contracts to be more efficient, and validators to be more flexible to manage.
Originally planned as two separate upgrades, Prague and Electra were merged into a single update—Pectra—to streamline the process and maximize benefits. Pectra includes updates to both the execution layer (where smart contracts and dapps operate) and the consensus layer (where Proof of Stake mechanism exists) of the Ethereum network.
Q3. Blockscout traces its roots back to the POA Network, an Ethereum-based platform offering an open-source framework for smart contracts. In 2018, POA Network launched Blockscout to set a new standard for blockchain exploration tools. Users were equipped with detailed insights to easily verify transactions on the Ethereum blockchain, sidechains, and private chains. Please comment on how you managed to achieve this and reach where you are?
A: While building POA Network, we realized the existing block explorer options were closed source and limited in functionality. This meant we couldn’t propose updates, contribute to development or integrate sidechain platforms. Blockscout set a new standard for blockchain exploration tools by providing an open-source alternative, with detailed insights for users looking to easily verify transactions on the Ethereum blockchain.
Initially funded by POA Network and a grant from ETHPrize, a beta version of Blockscout was released on GitHub for community input in August 2018 after nearly a year of development. Since its launch in 2018, Blockscout has matured into a feature-rich product that meets the need for a robust block explorer functioning on multiple blockchains.
It’s thanks to the hard work of our technical contributors and the detailed feedback from our dedicated community that Blockscout is so advanced in functionality. We are proud to deliver a high-quality product that is open and available to all users, and remain committed to closely collaborating with our ever-expanding community to refine and strengthen Blockscout.
Q4. Integration of emerging technologies. How is AI enhancing blockchain explorers?
A: Blockchain data provides a fertile ground for AI training. New data is constantly flowing in, and it often mirrors historical data while incorporating minute variations. Data patterns can be digested and interpreted as the dataset and the blockchain itself evolves with new methods and features.
A user trying to verify the completion of a simple token swap will head to the transaction page available on a block explorer. However, they’re presented with a long list of data and too much detail that’s difficult to interpret. Of course, blockchain transactions are often more complicated than simple purchases, and can involve complex data, contract addresses, multiple transfers, and different fees. Translating this data into simple human-readable summaries is no small feat.
At Blockscout we’ve been exploring AI integration and training AI models to simplify transaction summaries and improve human-readable transactions. This is something that is needed for users now, and is a perfect first use case for implementing an AI model into Blockscout.
We partnered with an agency specializing in AI training to develop the basic model. We chose the open-source Llama 2 model and started with simple templates for single transactions and interpretations. In the initial training we included 12 basic types of common transactions along with varying examples of each.
Providing simple transaction summaries is only the beginning of the Blockscout AI integration. With the initial AI training in progress, we plan to incorporate more nuanced actions and features including:
- ● Bridging transactions which involve external metadata (the explorer needs to know the contract is a bridge contract). AI can start to catalog this data and bring it in to understand funds are being sent to a bridge rather than a standard contract. AI-classified metadata can also be provided for other contexts within the explorer and beyond.
- ● Staking and other complex transactions. Additional templates including project-specific templates will be developed to decipher and summarize complicated transaction types.
- ● Account abstraction. Blockscout will support account abstraction (fee-less transactions) and the AI engine will be used to interpret AA transactions.
- ● Recent transaction summaries for individual wallets. Right now it takes too long to interpret a list of transactions into human-readable summaries. As the process becomes more streamlined, we’ll provide a list of the latest 20 transactions for each wallet address in an easy-to-read summary format.
By providing accurate and understandable details, block explorers serve as a vital source of information to users. Blockscout is using artificial intelligence to make this effort more efficient by quickly classifying data and providing context and readability for complicated transactions.
Q5. Future of DApp distribution and user acquisition strategies. What are the strategies for DApp developers to reach and retain users? What is the role of Blockscout in facilitating DApp discovery and interaction? How does user feedback shape product development?
A: DeFi presents many exciting and fresh opportunities all the time. From new swapping platforms to lending and yield farming, to exploring completely new chains and their dApp ecosystems, users are constantly exploring new options. Blockscout plays a crucial role in making dApp discovery and interaction much easier for everyone through several key initiatives.
In November 2023, Blockscout launched the DAppscout Apps Marketplace – a curated list of apps available to on-chain users with dApps listed on their respective EVM block explorers. This marketplace serves as a vital platform for raising the profile and visibility of dApps, helping them reach new users and gain momentum.
DApps are either embedded into the interface directly (like this Uniswap example) or added as 3rd party links. When embedded, a user can connect their web3 wallet once to Blockscout, then use it with all of the supported dApps. This saves time and makes for a seamless user experience when switching between multiple applications, which can help retain users and encourage exploration of new platforms across different chains.
In Web3, do-your-own-research is critical when determining safety, benefits and risks. DAppscout’s star rating feature is a simple tool that can help with a user’s research. It gives insights into which apps the community prefers, and also allows users to share their ratings for dApps they do and don’t like. This system of community feedback is essential for building trust, which is crucial for dApps to reach new users and gain traction.
A unique aspect of the DAppscout rating feature is that ratings on one chain are automatically shared among other chains where a dApp is deployed. For example, if a user rates the Uniswap dApp on Optimism, this rating propagates to other chains where Uniswap and DAppscout are available, like Ethereum Mainnet and Base. This increases the number of ratings across networks and provides a consistent cross-chain experience for DApp users.
Star ratings are just another step in a series of Blockscout improvements designed to increase trust, safety, and community engagement for Web3 applications. Next, we are exploring more ways users can submit qualitative dApp Reviews to provide in-depth and helpful user feedback, allowing everyone to make the best dApp decisions.
Q6. Regarding security considerations when exploring DApps – What are some of the research-based insights into DApp security? What are the vulnerabilities and mitigation strategies?
A: While phishing links and scam tactics are well-known risks in the crypto space, there can also be inherent risks in smart contracts themselves. These can include coding errors, logic flaws, or intentionally malicious code that could lead to fund loss or exploitation. Common vulnerabilities include reentrancy attacks, integer overflow/underflow, and unauthorized access to critical functions.
To mitigate these risks, we’ve implemented several strategies such as the integration with SolidityScan, an AI-driven tool designed for Smart Contract Vulnerability Detection. This tool allows users to quickly assess the security of verified contracts in real-time. When viewing a contract on Blockscout, users see a security score next to a shield icon, calculated by SolidityScan’s advanced AI algorithms. These algorithms analyze the contract’s methods and patterns to determine a safety rating.
For a deeper dive into potential vulnerabilities, users can click the shield icon to access additional security details and a full report. This comprehensive analysis provides insights into contract functions, upgradeability, ownership, and an overall threat score. This feature serves both end-users and developers, who can use it to check for vulnerabilities during the development process.
While something like SolidityScan isn’t a replacement for a thorough security audit, it offers a quick, complementary service for detecting potential vulnerabilities. By integrating this tool, we’ve made it easier for everyone to practice safe search and interaction in the Web3 ecosystem, providing additional transparency and accessible security tools for on-chain interactions.
