Sui is a Layer 1 blockchain. It was designed by ex-Meta (Facebook) employees to allow creators and developers to build on-chain assets.
In Japanese philosophy, Sui is the water element – its power lies in its fluidity. Sui’s goal is to provide a flexible network that builders can leverage to “shape the web3 landscape.”
Let’s dive in.
Solving web3 pain points?
Due to limited throughput and scalability, poor user experiences are common in web3. Games and services are slow and expensive.
“Existing technology suffers from restrictive storage methods and inherently unsafe programmability models, which force developers to compromise on functionality and user experience,” said Sui creator Even Cheng.
Sui aims to solve that by offering a secure and scalable platform that delivers a simplified user experience at a low cost.
How? By scaling horizontally.
Sui uses what’s known as “parallel agreement” on independent transactions.
For some context, most blockchains (e.g. Ethereum) execute smart contracts/transactions sequentially. This means that all submitted transactions that are awaiting confirmation by validators are verified individually and in a particular (sequential) order.
Instead, it allows for parallel agreements across independent transactions. This means that a large number of transactions can be processed at the same time.
Designed for builders
Sui is designed to offer a simple user experience that is accessible to mainstream builders and developers. It promises that builders will “spend less time fixing smart contracts, more time building cool sh*t.”
Move programming language
The platform is built on Sui Move, an upgraded version of the Move smart contract programming language. Currently, the main blockchain programming language is Solidity. It was designed to implement basic programming concepts.
However, as blockchain technology has developed, it has become clear that the main role of blockchain languages is to work with digital assets and ensure security, for which Move was specifically designed.
It takes advantage of Move’s flexibility and security and enhances it to improve performance and make programming easier.
Is Sui live?
It launched its Sui Devnet in May 2022. It is currently working on its Testnet.
Testnet, as the word suggests, refers to a blockchain or protocol that is currently not fully developed, or requires trialling before going live with large amounts of user funds at risk.
Does Sui have a token?
They plan to have a public token, called SUI, for the Mainnet. However, it is not yet available, and according to Sui’s website, there is currently no timeline either.
Sui uses the proof of stake (PoS) consensus mechanism. The token holders will be able to stake their tokens to participate in the PoS mechanism in return for rewards paid in gas fees.
Holders will also be able to participate in Sui’s governance.
