EigenLayer EIGEN

EigenLayer is a new platform built on Ethereum that seeks to provide developers with access to the Ethereum staked capital base, as well as the decentralized validator set. By allowing access to this, trust networks can make certain mechanisms possible, even though they were unavailable in the past.

In its essence, EigenLayer operates as a set of smart contracts on Ethereum, which allow consensus layer Ether stakers to opt in to validate new software modules built on Ethereum’s blockchain.

What this means is that stakers allow EigenLayer smart contracts to impose additional slashing conditions on their staked Ether coins, which extends the cryptoeconomic security.

As a direct result of this, the security of Dapps that rely on the modules would be increased automatically. At the same time, ETH holders would pursue additional value using the new fee-generating opportunities.

Finally, EigenLayer would also act as a staging system for Ethereum, allowing for new and innovative solutions to be battle-tested in manifold variations before they are integrated back into Ethereum, once the developers learn what version of their solutions work best.

EigenLayer has a number of features that make it unique, starting with the project’s purpose itself, as the ability to restake is a new primitive in cryptoeconomic security.

Apart from that, the project also offers a feature known as Custom Decentralization, as the number of native ETH restakers is expected to grow exponentially over time. In time, services will be able to optimize for decentralization and enable censorship resistance via multilateral ordering and secret hashing.

Next, EigenLayer offers Custom Slashing, as it provisions cryptoeconomic security through various slashing mechanisms which levy a high cost of corruption. The slashing contract deployed by each service individually will dictate the terms and conditions of slashing.

Meanwhile, by choosing EigenLayer restaking with a specific service, stakers accept the risk of being subjected to slashing in accordance with the rules of the slashing contract.

Finally, there is Operator Delegation, which is an avenue for stakers interested in participating in EigenLayer, but not willing to run software containers of services themselves.

This will allow them to delegate EigenLayer operations to operators, which they will choose themselves based on criteria such as their trustworthiness, rewards that the staker receives, and preferences for services.