With Snapshot X’s recent release, a significant milestone in Ethereum governance has been reached. This new fully onchain voting protocol, features Storage Proofs, a solution developed by our team at Herodotus, which promises to transform how DAOs conduct governance by combining Ethereum’s security with Layer 2 cost-efficiency. Let’s explore what Storage Proofs are, how they work within Snapshot X, and why they’re a game-changer for DAO organizations.
What are Storage Proofs?
Storage Proofs are a powerful verifiable data solution that allows smart contracts to securely access and verify arbitrary Ethereum data across different networks. This enables trustless verification of historical onchain data without introducing new trust assumptions.
How Storage Proofs Work in Snapshot X
Storage Proofs serve as a crucial bridge between Ethereum and Layer 2 networks like Starknet in Snapshot X. Here’s how they enable efficient cross-chain governance:
- Voting Power Calculation: Storage Proofs verify token balances on Ethereum mainnet at a specific block, without moving tokens to Layer 2.
- Layer 2 Processing: Starknet processes votes using the verified data, leveraging its low-cost computation.
- Ethereum Execution: Passed proposals are executed on Ethereum mainnet.
This process allows users to participate in governance without moving their assets, potentially without paying gas fees if the DAO chooses to sponsor transactions, all while ensuring the integrity of the voting process.
Why Storage Proofs Matter for DAO Governance
Storage Proofs in Snapshot X represent a significant advancement in DAO governance, offering a solution that is:
- Cost-Efficient: Users can vote on Starknet where onchain fees are much lower than on Ethereum mainnet.
- Highly Secure: Storage Proofs ensure cryptographic verification of token balances and voting power from Ethereum’s state, guaranteeing tamper-proof voting power calculation.
- User-Friendly: The familiar Snapshot interface and potential for gasless voting experience lower the barrier to participation.
- Scalable: The use of Layer 2 solutions allows for handling a much larger number of votes without congesting the Ethereum network.
- Flexible: Storage Proofs can verify any contract state variable on Ethereum, enabling diverse voting strategies beyond what’s possible with traditional onchain voting. While onchain voting on L1 without Storage Proofs is limited to tokens implementing the ERC-20 Votes extension, Storage Proofs allow for voting based on any token balance, NFT ownership, or even complex combinations of onchain data. This significantly expands the possibilities for governance mechanisms, removing a major limitation of current systems.
Starknet Governance Powered by Storage Proofs
With the launch of Snapshot X, applications will now be able to leverage Starknet and Storage Proofs to benefit from Ethereum’s security and liquidity while conducting governance activities on a more cost-effective Layer 2 solution. DAOs can implement sophisticated voting mechanisms that reference Ethereum-based assets and data, all without compromising on security or trustlessness. In fact, Starknet’s own governance, using the STRK token, is now already running on Snapshot X! This integration allows Starknet and other Starknet projects, such as Nostra Finance, to run their governance on Snapshot X, benefiting from the advantages of Storage Proofs.
However, enabling seamless cross-chain governance required solving an additional challenge: synchronizing time across different blockchains.
Timestamp to Block Mapper
To enable the required cross-chain interactions, and ensure it is not possible to double vote, we also needed to develop what can be viewed like a cross-chain clock to map the blocks to timestamps. We called this the Timestamp to Block Mapper. This tool allows for efficient conversion between timestamps and block numbers across different chains. In the context of Snapshot X, it enables precise synchronization of voting periods and power calculations between Ethereum and Starknet, ensuring accurate and timely governance processes.
With Storage Proofs and the Timestamp to Block Mapper working in tandem, Snapshot X provides a robust foundation for cross-chain governance. But our vision for the future of DAO governance extends even further.
Future Potential
We’re exploring ways that in the future, Snapshot X could leverage Verifiable Compute thanks to our recently announced Data Processor. This could enable even more sophisticated voting strategies through cryptographically verifiable onchain data feeds. For instance, it might become possible to calculate voting power based on an account’s monthly average token balance, rather than just the balance at a single specified block. The possibilities for innovative governance mechanisms are vast.
Conclusion
As Snapshot X launches with Storage Proofs at its core, we’re witnessing a new era in DAO governance. This powerful combination of onchain voting, Layer 2 efficiency, and Storage Proof security offers a robust solution for implementing truly efficient and tamper-resistant governance mechanisms.
Storage Proofs are set to play a crucial role in the future of cross-chain interactions and governance, and we at Herodotus are proud to contribute to this significant step forward in DAO operations. We are honored to work alongside the brilliant Snapshot Labs team to bring fully onchain voting to DAOs.
