Blockspace is becoming incredibly abundant. We're finally starting to see what a world with low fees looks like, and it's pretty exciting.

In a world where blockspace is cheap, what differentiates various blockspace? The answer is simple: blockspace quality.

Blockspace quality is a spectrum. Ethereum, the most secure and decentralized smart contract platform, is at the core of this spectrum. Slightly further out, we have Layer 2s - still very secure, but with some slight tradeoffs. Beyond that, we have various degrees of data availability that affect the blockspace quality - validiums, plasma, and everything in between. And then we have alt-L1s with wholly separate security guarantees, secured by independent assets. The blockspace quality thesis will likely play out there, too, but to a lesser extent.

So what does this mean for Ethereum? In my view, the most valuable activity - socially and economically - will still happen on Ethereum and its closest orbits. This is where the majority of the assets and high-value applications will exist. Assets will chase yield, sure - but they'll also require security. And Ethereum has no shortage of that.

Further out on the spectrum, we'll likely see more experimentation and novel use cases emerge because they will need less security, and fees will be negligible. Games, social applications, and other low-value activities will probably find a home on the fringes. However, these applications will still rely on Ethereum in some way, whether for economic security or access to bridges via Ethereum.

High-value blockspace radiates from Ethereum at the core and gets cheaper near the edges. Further out on the spectrum, there is less direct value accrual, but the fringes are where the most experimentation and novel use cases will emerge.

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Blockspace is becoming incredibly abundant. We're finally starting to see what a world with low fees looks like, and it's pretty exciting.

In a world where blockspace is cheap, what differentiates various blockspace? The answer is simple: blockspace quality.

Blockspace quality is a spectrum. Ethereum, the most secure and decentralized smart contract platform, is at the core of this spectrum. Slightly further out, we have Layer 2s - still very secure, but with some slight tradeoffs. Beyond that, we have various degrees of data availability that affect the blockspace quality - validiums, plasma, and everything in between. And then we have alt-L1s with wholly separate security guarantees, secured by independent assets. The blockspace quality thesis will likely play out there, too, but to a lesser extent.

So what does this mean for Ethereum? In my view, the most valuable activity - socially and economically - will still happen on Ethereum and its closest orbits. This is where the majority of the assets and high-value applications will exist. Assets will chase yield, sure - but they'll also require security. And Ethereum has no shortage of that.

Further out on the spectrum, we'll likely see more experimentation and novel use cases emerge because they will need less security, and fees will be negligible. Games, social applications, and other low-value activities will probably find a home on the fringes. However, these applications will still rely on Ethereum in some way, whether for economic security or access to bridges via Ethereum.

High-value blockspace radiates from Ethereum at the core and gets cheaper near the edges. Further out on the spectrum, there is less direct value accrual, but the fringes are where the most experimentation and novel use cases will emerge.

Thanks for reading! Follow @pseudotheos on Twitter to get notified of future posts, or click the subscribe button below. This article is licensed under CC BY-SA.