The Sei Foundation has announced a proposal to upgrade the Sei blockchain to version 2, targeting enhanced performance and Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) compatibility. This upgrade, spearheaded by Sei Labs, aims to bring a high-performance, parallelized EVM to the Sei Layer 1 blockchain.
Governance Proposal and Upgrade Timeline
On Monday, the Sei Foundation initiated a governance proposal to implement this significant upgrade. If approved, the network upgrade will occur one week later. The new EVM will allow the porting of Ethereum-based contracts to Sei, enabling sub-second finality and reducing transaction confirmation times.
Advanced Features and Competitive Edge
Sei v2 will offer advanced features such as parallelized execution, similar to high-performance blockchains like Solana. This functionality positions Sei to compete with other parallelized EVMs, including Monad and Neon. The upgrade is expected to attract prominent Ethereum-based applications like Uniswap, Frax, X2Y2, Bancor, Balancer, Rarible, Layer Zero, Nansen, and The Graph, all planning to deploy on the Sei v2 network.
Expanding Developer Ecosystem
Since its mainnet beta launch in August 2023, Sei has supported Cosmos-based dapps written in Rust. The transition to Sei v2 seeks to expand the network’s capabilities and compatibility, attracting a broader range of developers. This strategic move aims to enhance the ecosystem and bring more diverse applications to the Sei blockchain.
Financial and Technological Commitment
In April 2023, Sei Labs, the network’s core developer, raised $30 million in funding through two strategic rounds from venture capital firms, including Jump and Multicoin Capital. This funding highlights Sei Labs’ financial and technological commitment to advancing the Sei blockchain ecosystem.
The proposed upgrade to Sei v2 marks a significant milestone in the blockchain’s development, aiming to enhance its performance and compatibility with Ethereum-based applications. With strong financial backing and a clear vision for technological advancement, Sei is poised to strengthen its position in the competitive blockchain landscape.
