Celestia blockchain development

Celestia stands as a versatile network that grants developers the infrastructure needed to create and ensure the operational capabilities of blockchains. It serves as a platform where various projects can utilize it as layered components for both data availability and consensus.

Since the inception of Bitcoin, its creators have been striving to overcome the scalability challenge. It is crucial that a blockchain’s ability to process a high volume of transactions does not compromise its security and decentralized nature. In the year 2023, significant progress has been made in this regard through the implementation of second-layer networks. Celestia takes a distinct approach by segregating the fundamental functions of transaction execution, consensus, and data availability within the blockchain itself. This innovative design allows for seamless adaptation to an expanding ecosystem without sacrificing decentralization or security.

Celestia operates as a modular network tailored towards decentralized applications (DApps), providing developers with the necessary infrastructure to establish and maintain functional blockchains. Its architecture permits diverse projects to employ Celestia as layered components for data availability and consensus. To ensure smooth operation, a decentralized network must fulfill four key functions: consensus, transaction execution, data availability, and computation. Traditional monolithic blockchains, like Ethereum, often encounter scalability issues as these functions vie for the same resources.

One potential solution lies in adopting a modular blockchain architecture, which entails the separation of these functions into distinct layers. Each layer functions as an independent module designed to address specific tasks.These modular blocks can be combined, and the blockchains themselves can interact to complement one another’s functionalities. For instance, a project may offer a consensus layer within one network while providing a data availability (DA) layer within another.

The concept of data availability and its significance within a blockchain ecosystem are paramount. Data availability encompasses the process by which validators publish and store transactions, states, and other crucial network information, thereby establishing transparency and verifiability. In the realm of monolithic networks, participants are burdened with the requirement of downloading all block data to assess its availability. As block sizes expand, this poses a practical challenge for regular users who find it impractical to retrieve and verify such a vast volume of information, thus impeding their ability to validate the entire chain. Celestia tackles this challenge by introducing a solution that empowers lightweight nodes to validate only a fraction of each block, employing a methodology referred to as data availability sampling (DAS). This innovative approach enables blockchain scalability without compromising the underlying security measures.

The origins of the project trace back to Mustafa Al-Bassam, a former hacker who faced FBI arrest due to involvement in a series of cyber attacks. Al-Bassam, a skilled programmer, emerged as one of the founding members of the Chainspace smart contract platform, which caught the attention of Mark Zuckerberg and was eventually acquired by him in 2019.

The inception of Celestia took place in 2019, with a team comprising experts from notable IT companies like Google and Amazon, alongside blockchain engineers affiliated with Ethereum, Cosmos, and Harmony.

Initially named Lazy Ledger during its early stages, the project underwent a rebranding in the summer of 2023, adopting the name Celestia. The primary objective of the protocol was to tackle the challenges associated with launching new networks. While the deployment of Layer 2 solutions on existing blockchains, such as Ethereum, offers some resolution to this problem, it still compromises security, decentralization, and scalability.

Furthermore, the launch of any Layer 2 solution typically necessitates a significant amount of time and financial resources. In contrast, Celestia introduces an alternative approach by segregating consensus and transaction execution into separate modules. This design enables subsequent programs to maintain flexibility for their own programming, internal modifications, and process customization, all while leveraging the capabilities of the Celestia platform.

The Celestia team consists of accomplished specialists with advanced expertise in cryptography, programming, and a strong connection to the cryptocurrency realm. Among them are Mustafa Al-Bassam, serving as the CEO of Celestia Labs; Ismail Khoffi, holding the position of CTO; John Adler, an employee at ConsenSys and actively involved in the deployment of Ethereum 2.0; and Nick White, who co-founded Harmony.

Al-Bassam, possessing a doctoral degree in computer science, collaborated with Vitalik Buterin on a significant work focusing on the utilization of fraud proofs at the data availability level, which is commonly referred to as DAS. The foundational concepts proposed in that collaboration form the basis of the Celestia framework.

Additionally, Adler played a key role as a co-founder of the Fuel Network project, which centers around a modular blockchain framework with a specific focus on the execution layer.

As reported by Crunchbase, Celestia Labs has successfully raised a significant sum of $56.5 million. This funding was acquired through a series of five investment rounds involving the participation of 38 distinct companies, such as Polychain, OKX Ventures, Binance Labs, Bain Capital Crypto, Interchain Foundation, Blockchain Capital, and many others.

In the month of March in 2021, the team secured $1.5 million in seed funding, providing crucial support during the early stages. Subsequently, in May 2022, the Mamaki test network was launched to meticulously assess the project’s functionality and address any existing bugs or issues.

A notable development occurred approximately two weeks before the listing, precisely on October 16, 2023, when additional financing was secured from OKX Ventures and Binance Labs. The specific details regarding the number of tokens sold during this round and the corresponding average price remain undisclosed at present.

The blockchain officially went live on the mainnet on October 31, 2023. Simultaneously, the development team conducted an airdrop of the TIA cryptocurrency to a staggering 580,000 addresses. According to estimations by FundStrat, the overall value of the distribution amounted to approximately $120 million.

How Does Celestia Operate?

Celestia functions as a modular blockchain system that achieves scalability by effectively separating the execution layer from consensus and introducing a unique component called Data Availability Sampling (DAS). The primary focus of the network lies in organizing transactions and ensuring the availability of data.

The Data Availability (DA) layer is structured as a Proof-of-Stake (PoS) blockchain known as celestia-app, which operates as an integral application within the broader Celestia ecosystem. This application is built upon an enhanced version of the Tendermint Core consensus algorithm and utilizes the Cosmos SDK framework.

Distinguishing itself from traditional monolithic blockchains, Celestia accommodates various types of nodes, each serving distinct purposes. These include consensus nodes, Blobstream solution-supporting nodes, and DA nodes.

The DA nodes further encompass the following categories:

• Bridge nodes: These nodes establish connections between the data availability and consensus layers.
• Full storage nodes: They are responsible for storing the entire network’s data but remain detached from the data availability layer and, as a consequence, do not actively participate in the consensus process.
• Light nodes: These nodes facilitate the verification of Data Availability (DA).
• The Data Availability layer within Celestia incorporates two crucial components: the aforementioned Data Availability Sampling and Name-marked Merkle Trees (NMT). These elements provide practical solutions to enhance the scalability of the blockchain network.

Data Availability Sampling

Through the implementation of DAS, lightweight nodes can validate data availability by randomly sampling small fragments from each block, eliminating the need for complete block downloads. Their focus lies solely on verifying the intermediate Merkle tree roots.

During the DAS process, lightweight nodes also possess the capability to identify invalid transactions using fraud proofs. These proofs rely on full nodes when transmitted, enabling the detection of such operations without requiring information about the entire registry state.

Furthermore, as the number of participating lightweight nodes in the DAS system increases, it allows for the utilization of larger blocks that can accommodate a higher number of transactions. In contrast, a monolithic blockchain would be compelled to compromise decentralization as increasing block size would escalate the demands for data loading and verification.

Moreover, considering that rollups also rely on DA for scalability, Celestia holds the theoretical potential to significantly enhance solutions based on them.

Name-marked Merkle Trees

Celestia organizes block data into distinct indexed spaces, each designated for a specific application. This approach empowers individual dApps to selectively load their own relevant data while disregarding irrelevant information.

To ensure the integrity of the provided data within a given space, the system employs Name-marked Merkle Trees (NMT). These trees are structured in a way that “leaf” nodes are ordered based on space identifiers, and the hash function is configured to encompass the space range for all “descendant nodes.”

What is the TIA Cryptocurrency?

TIA serves as the native token of the Celestia network, fulfilling crucial roles in fee payments and sustaining the consensus mechanism’s operation. This cryptocurrency plays multiple significant functions within the ecosystem.

TIA Functions

In order to leverage Celestia for ensuring Data Availability (DA), users are required to pay a fee denominated in TIA. For instance, when rollup developers publish data on the network, they initiate PayForBlobs transactions.

Fees are also applicable to on-chain operations. The blockchain employs a standard mempool that prioritizes transactions based on gas prices. This means that validators give precedence to processing transactions with higher fees.

Project teams utilizing Celestia as a DA layer have the flexibility to launch their own networks without an immediate need for token issuance. TIA can fulfill a similar role as ETH in the Ethereum network, serving as a means of currency and gas payment.

As previously mentioned, Celestia implements the Proof-of-Stake (PoS) algorithm for achieving consensus. This involves staking, and since the blockchain utilizes the Cosmos SDK framework, network participants can delegate tokens to validators and receive rewards.

TIA holders possess the ability to vote on various proposals pertaining to network parameter changes. Cryptocurrency stakers also have the opportunity to influence the distribution of funding from the community pool.

TIA Distribution

Upon Celestia’s launch, the initial TIA emission amounted to 1 billion tokens. The initial TIA emission is subject to an unlocking schedule. While locked assets can still be staked, rewards for participating in consensus become available only after unlocking. Currently, the TIA token is listed on numerous centralized exchanges, including WhiteBIT, Binance, KuCoin, Gate, BingX, Mexc, OKX, Bybit, and other platforms.

Celestia stands as one of the pioneers in the modular blockchain sector. Its innovative approach to scalability and network security, coupled with the successful introduction of the TIA cryptocurrency, positions the project as a leader in the emerging market.