Original Source: Boundless
· Boundless is enabling OP Rollups to achieve true fast finality.
· This is the first zero-knowledge proof-driven, non-interactive dispute mechanism (Non-interactive Dispute Game).
· Rollup only needs a single set of smart contracts to flexibly switch between ZK Fault Proof and Validity Proof modes.
Leveraging the Boundless Network, Rollups can access 400 trillion proof cycles per day, with a median cost of less than $0.04 per billion cycles.
· Based on the current throughput, Boundless can provide about $29,000 per month in proof services for the OP Mainnet (24.34T cycles/day), about $8,700 for Unichain (72.6B cycles/day), and about $835 for BOB (7B cycles/day). As further optimizations are rolled out, the costs will decrease significantly.
· Currently, Rollups such as BOB, SOON, and MegaETH are already using Boundless on mainnet.
Rollups have brought true scalability to Ethereum and the broader blockchain ecosystem. They have repeatedly demonstrated that offloading execution from the Ethereum mainnet is feasible, and user experience can be continuously improved without compromising decentralization.
But as more and more chains go live and the value carried by Rollups continues to grow, one question begins to become unavoidable:
Who exactly ensures the security of Rollup itself?
For a long time, Optimistic Rollups have been built upon the same core assumption:
A state submission is considered valid by default and is only overturned when successfully challenged.
This design is simple and elegant, but the cost is equally obvious:
A 7-day challenge period, a complex and fragile interactive dispute process, and high capital tie-up costs.
These issues slow down capital flow, amplify counterparty risk, and force users to turn to more centralized cross-chain solutions in exchange for faster asset turnover.
As the ecosystem gradually matures, the direction has become clear.
The next step is not to abandon Optimistic Rollups, but to upgrade them.
Rollups Solution Empowered by Boundless
Boundless's Rollup solution provides OP Stack-based Rollups with a direct upgrade path to fast finality and Stage 2 readiness.
It is a direct upgrade built on top of the Optimistic model, replacing the original interactive dispute resolution process with ZK (Zero-Knowledge) proofs. This is the first non-interactive dispute resolution solution based on ZK to be implemented within the OP chain ecosystem.
Boundless supports both ZK Fault Proof and Validity Proof within the same unified framework.
Rollup can initially operate in ZK Fault Proof mode, significantly shortening finality while maintaining efficiency. When faster confirmation speeds are needed, it can switch to full Validity Proof mode. Moreover, it can smoothly transition between these two modes as requirements change.
All of this is underpinned by the Boundless Network. As currently the largest proof network globally, Boundless provides massive proof computational power for rollups, while inheriting the decentralization properties and liveness guarantees of the selected settlement chain.
Flexible security model
Boundless provides a configurable security framework that can be adjusted according to the specific needs of different OP Rollups:
ZK Fault Proof Mode
Adopting a non-interactive ZK dispute resolution mechanism, disputes can be resolved with just one ZK proof, completely eliminating the binary dispute process and reducing finality time from 7 days to approximately 24 hours.
Validity Proof Mode
Before a block is finalized, each block is validated, completely eliminating reliance on dispute processes, thereby achieving finality within minutes.
The team can start with a hybrid model at almost no cost, and upgrade to Validity Proofs when conditions are ripe. Moreover, they can freely switch between the two models as cost structures or business requirements change. This flexibility allows Rollups to maintain full control over performance and cost, while also preparing in advance to meet the proof standards required by Stage 2.
Core Advantages of Boundless Network
Boundless Network makes proof generation truly scalable and predictable.
Massive proof capacity
Boundless is currently the only network that employs a permissionless proof-of-capacity incentive mechanism, ensuring continuous online availability of computing power. The network currently provides 400 trillion proof cycles per day, which is 46 times larger than other proof networks.
Highly competitive proof cost
By aggregating idle and highly optimized hardware resources, Boundless significantly reduces the marginal cost per individual proof. Developers can achieve performance close to that of dedicated systems without the need to build or maintain their own infrastructure.
On Boundless, the median cost per 1 billion cycles is just $0.04.
No new trust assumptions are required.
Boundless adopts a design centered around smart contracts, directly inheriting the security of the chosen settlement layer (such as Ethereum, Base) selected by developers, rather than adding extra trust assumptions.
Native antifragility design
Boundless is composed of independent provers and verifiers from multiple chains, without relying on any centralized nodes. Even under network congestion or attacks, the system can still operate stably. The entire market's operation does not depend on the core team running any critical infrastructure.
It is precisely these characteristics that make Boundless the only network currently capable of meeting the comprehensive requirements of high-performance rollups in terms of proof capacity, cost, and stability. Its overall performance is difficult for self-built solutions or more centralized proving networks to match.
Median cost per billion cycles on Boundless: $0.04
Make ZK Rollups a Reality
For a long time, the high cost of ZK proofs has been a core bottleneck limiting their large-scale adoption, and Boundless is changing this status quo.
By integrating Rollup with the Boundless Network, the cost of verification is significantly reduced, making it a practical and viable option to continuously perform large-scale validity proofs on the mainnet.
At the current throughput level, Boundless can provide approximately $29,000 in proof services per month for the OP mainnet (24.34 trillion cycles/day), about $8,700 for Unichain (7.26 trillion cycles/day), and about $835 for BOB (700 billion cycles/day). These figures demonstrate that Boundless can achieve efficient and stable scaling across Rollups of different sizes.
Currently, the median proof cost per 1 billion cycles on Boundless is $0.04.
Has been verified in real networks.
Boundless's Rollup solution is not just a conceptual proposal, but one that has already begun operation on real-world networks.
· BOB is building a hybrid rollup that brings programmability to the Bitcoin ecosystem, allowing developers to inherit Bitcoin's security while enjoying the flexibility of Ethereum smart contracts.
MegaETH is a new generation high-performance Rollup designed for real-time applications, constantly pushing the limits of throughput and latency. SOON is a Rollup system based on SVM, aiming to bring Solana-level performance to more ecosystems.
These projects all rely on Boundless, which replaces the original interactive dispute process with a ZK mechanism, significantly reducing withdrawal waiting times.
"Interactive proofs are costly, structurally fragile, and easily abused. [Boundless] eliminates the risk of malicious blocking and ensures dispute resolution is both efficient and scalable." — MegaETH Team
Build the Future for Your Rollup in Advance
Whether it's the OP architecture or customized Rollup designs, Boundless provides a universal foundation for scalable proof-based infrastructure.
Boundless's Rollup solution enables every team to utilize ZK proofs to secure their own chain, advancing Rollup from "optimistic proofs" to "verifiable security." This achieves faster finality while providing stronger security and smoother cross-ecosystem collaboration capabilities.
This article is a contribution and does not represent the views of BlockBeats.
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