We all want cheap transaction fees but we also want decentralization and security. At the moment, Ethereum can't provide us with that so we need to go beyond the first layer and look for simpler solutions.

Before we begin, if Vitalik's Mom was involved in an ETH scaling solution, would you use it?

Scaling Sucks

Before we get into Metis let's talk about the current scaling progress. Arbitrum, Optimism and zkSync are all great but they all have one thing in common - VC backing. If we are aiming for true decentralization this model can't work because VCs will always have their interests in front of everything else.

Another issue are token distribution models. Everyone is expecting these rollups to airdrop their tokens sometime in the future but those that make the rules always get the bigger piece of the pie. If you don't know what I'm talking about here is a blast from the past.

VC Fund Farms Millions from DeFi Airdrop; It Backed the Same Project

Unfair distribution can't work in the long run so we need a solution that is not corrupted by VC money and Metis could just be the thing we are all looking for.

What Is Metis?

Metis is an L2 scaling solution that has gained very little popularity in the space. This is mostly caused by the lack of VC marketing money but that shouldn't discredit the project in any way. A closer look under the hood brings a lot of promises and a few surprises as well.

It combines Vitalik Buterin’s own vision for the future of Ethereum. This is what’s really interesting: it didn’t happen by accident! Now, Vitalik’s mother’s involvement in Metis is public, and Vitalik knows Metis CEO Elena. Elena is Vitalik’s childhood sweetheart and has known each other since she was a toddler. It’s easy to put the two of them together.

That's the weird part and if you want to read more about it be my guest.

On the technical side of things, Metis seems to have a lot to offer:

• Cheap transactions

• Almost instant confirmations

• Publicly funded

• Fast and scalable

Based on the spirit of Optimistic Rollup, Metis is building an easy-to-use, highly scalable, low-cost, and fully functional Layer 2 framework (Metis Rollup) to fully support the application and business migration from Web 2.0 to Web 3.0. Its scalable protocol supports a wide range of use cases, including yield farming, DEX trading, and powering the gig economy via dApps that offer cheap and fast micropayments.

Non-Developer Friendly

Apart from trying to solve Ethereums scaling problems, Metis also wants to bring blockchain development closer to everyone. Metis Polis is aiming to do just that with a simplified dashboard that should enable "anyone" to port their apps over from other chains and even from Web 2.0.

Metis aims to allow everyone access to blockchain. Polis is the first step towards building the full Metis Ecosystem. Developers who are not familiar with blockchain will be able to connect to Polis with their own product and create decentralized applications (DApps) with ease.

More info on Pollis can be found here.

How To Get Started

You can use Metis today if you want to and bridging over shouldn't be a hustle.

Metamask Setup

Network Name: Metis Network
New RPC URL: https://andromeda.metis.io/?owner=1088
ChainID: 1088
Symbol: Metis
Block Explorer URL: https://andromeda-explorer.metis.io/

PolyBridge can help you get some Metis across from other chains. It can also be bought on some cexes but I don't think they will allow direct withdrawals to the Metis network.

Gate.io Link: https://www.gate.io/trade/METIS_USDT
Uniswap: https://v2.info.uniswap.org/pair/0xd03dffd02db4b076e3eed9272a6a243a23de16e3
Coingecko: https://www.coingecko.com/en/coins/metis-token
Coinmarketcap: https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/metisdao/
$METIS contract address: 0x9e32b13ce7f2e80a01932b42553652e053d6ed8e

Conclusion

This is just a first look at Metis and from what I can see it is worth a shot. The Buterin family involvement is a bit strange but knowing Vitalik's goals and commitment to scaling ETH, this can only be a good sign.

I also love the fact that they are making the chain more noob-friendly so even the non-dev people can deploy and experiment with dapps. All in all, Metis is definitely worth looking into. If you don't want to miss the L2 hype train you simply have to add it to your list.