What is Optimism (OP)?

Optimism is a Layer-2 blockchain protocol developed to address Ethereum's scalability issues. Essentially, it reduces the load on the main network by rolling up transactions from Ethereum onto its own sidechain (using a rollup method). This allows transactions to be completed much faster and more cost-effectively. The Optimism network uses a technology called "Optimistic Rollup." This method assumes transactions are correct and is processed off-chain, with only errors occurring. This allows users to maintain the security and decentralization advantages offered by Ethereum while also benefiting from faster transaction times and lower gas fees.

The Optimism project is run by the non-profit Optimism Foundation. The project emerged in 2019 as a product of scalability research conducted in the Ethereum community and launched its mainnet in 2021. The team, founded by Jinglan Wang, Ben Jones, and Kevin Ho, has succeeded in developing a second-layer platform that is fully compatible with Ethereum (EVM-compatible). The project's native cryptocurrency, the OP token, was distributed to the community in the first airdrop in May 2022. The OP token stands out as a governance token that provides a voice in the network's management and has attracted the attention of Ethereum users since its launch.

In this article, we'll explore questions like what OP coin is, how Optimism works, and more. We'll also touch on topics like the Optimism Ethereum connection and the Optimism Layer 2 solution.

Definition and Origin of Optimism

Optimism is a scaling solution developed to address Ethereum's problems such as high transaction fees and slow speed. Technically, it uses an "optimistic rollup" model, which processes transactions outside of Ethereum and then sends a summary to the main chain. This approach reduces congestion on Ethereum, increases transaction capacity, and allows users to process transactions at a much lower cost. Furthermore, Optimism is designed to be fully compatible with smart contracts on Ethereum. This means that applications running on the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) can be ported to the Optimism network with virtually no modifications. This EVM compatibility offers an advantage that significantly simplifies the migration process for developers and projects.

The project's foundations are rooted in research originating within the Ethereum community. In 2019, the nonprofit Plasma Group team began working on a next-generation scaling solution for Ethereum. Inspired by Vitalik Buterin's rollup ideas, the team put this vision into practice and developed the Optimistic Rollup model. Later, Ethereum developers such as Jinglan Wang, Ben Jones, and Kevin Ho founded a public benefit company called Optimism PBC to bring these ideas to life. After conducting experiments on various testnets throughout 2020, Optimism officially launched the mainnet in 2021. As of December 2021, the Optimism mainnet went live, and the first Ethereum-based applications began migrating to the Optimism Layer-2 network. The primary motivation for this project was to reduce transaction fees, which rise with increasing density on Ethereum, and to provide a more accessible blockchain experience for everyone.

Optimism's History: Major Milestones

Optimism's development process, as well as its technical foundations, is of great importance to the Ethereum ecosystem. Founded in 2019, the project launched its mainnet in 2021, taking on a leading role among Layer-2 solutions. Over time, it has evolved from a technology offering only scaling to a more comprehensive ecosystem with governance mechanisms, community structure, and technical infrastructure. Below, you can find the major milestones in Optimism's journey in chronological order.

• 2021: After extensive testing, the Optimism network officially launched with its mainnet. Specifically, on December 16, 2021, the whitelisting was lifted, allowing everyone to access Optimism's L2 network. This development is considered the launch of one of the first major scaling solutions on Ethereum.
• 2022: Optimism launched its native token. In April 2022, the Optimism Collective, aiming to hand over the project's governance to the community, was announced, and the Optimism Foundation was established. The OP token was subsequently introduced, and the first OP token airdrop was held in May 2022. In this first airdrop, 214 million OP, approximately 5% of the total OP supply, was distributed to approximately 250,000 wallets, including early adopters. With the OP token, users had the opportunity to participate in the network's governance and have a say in the protocol's future.
• 2023: The Optimism team announced its "Superchain" vision, which aims to further enhance the network's scalability. With this vision, Optimism's infrastructure, the OP Stack, enabled different institutions and projects to build their own L2 networks. As part of this effort, a collaboration with Coinbase was established, and a Layer-2 network called Base, developed on the OP Stack, was launched. Base joined the ecosystem as the second major L2 network using the OP Stack after the Optimism mainnet, creating a shared structure by transferring a portion of transaction fees to the Optimism network. 2023 also saw increased competition for Optimism. While competitors like Arbitrum in the Layer-2 market dominated metrics such as TVL (Total Locked Value) and active user count, Optimism continued to demonstrate steady growth. While Arbitrum saw declines in daily transaction count and active address count throughout the year, Optimism saw steady increases in these metrics.
• 2024: Technical updates such as "Fjord" and "Granite" were implemented, improving gas optimization and data availability, while permissionless fault proofs were reactivated. The "Ecotone" update introduced Ethereum's EIP-4844 blob support, reducing transaction fees by approximately 90%. Large bounties were distributed to Superchain developers with RetroPGF 4. Total value locked (TVL) reached approximately $682 million, with daily transaction volume remaining stable at 597,000. Developer and community events (SuperFest, Superhack, Sunnys) intensified. Airdrop 5 also took place, with 10.37 million OP distributed to over 54,000 addresses. More than 30 OP stacks became active on the Superchain, representing 60% of the total transaction volume in the Ethereum L2 market.

• 2025: Isthmus hardfork: Ethereum's Pectra update was integrated into the OP Stack, and the first implementation was made on Optimism L2s. Additionally, the new DAO budget for Seasons 8–9 was approved (4.44 million OPs). The Bedrock2.0 update increased rollup efficiency by 50%. Coinbase partnership announced: With Superchain integration, daily OP transaction volume through the retail wallet reached $1.3 billion. Work on the Superchain is still ongoing.

Why Is Optimism Valuable?

Overall, Optimism stands out as a strong infrastructure project poised to shape the future of the Ethereum ecosystem. It offers users a faster, cheaper, and more accessible blockchain experience, while providing developers with a flexible environment into which they can easily integrate their existing applications. This structure, which increases Ethereum's transaction capacity without compromising its security, makes Optimism highly attractive for both individual users and projects. Below, you can take a closer look at the key features that make Optimism valuable.

Low-fee transactions on Ethereum

Optimism offers an effective alternative to the high gas fees on the Ethereum mainnet. Thanks to its rollup structure, which processes transactions outside of Ethereum and sends a summary to the mainnet, transactions can be completed in seconds and at a much lower cost. This feature is a significant advantage for users, especially in high-interaction applications like DeFi and NFTs.

EVM compatibility and developer-friendly infrastructure

Optimism is designed to be 100% compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM). This allows smart contracts and dApps on Ethereum to run seamlessly on the Optimism network with virtually no modifications. This portability offers developers the opportunity to easily port their existing projects to Optimism. In this respect, Optimism is a second-layer solution that can be integrated into projects within the Ethereum ecosystem without requiring a learning curve. The differences between Ethereum and the Optimism network can be shared in the table below:

Category	Ethereum (Layer-1)	Optimism (Layer-2)
Purpose	Provides a secure, decentralized base layer for dApps	Scales Ethereum by enabling faster and cheaper transactions
Transaction Speed	~12–15 seconds block time	Near-instant confirmations via centralized sequencer
Transaction Cost (Gas)	High – can range from $10 to $50+ depending on network congestion	Low – usually a few cents to under $1
Security Model	Secured directly by Ethereum mainnet	Inherits Ethereum’s security through fraud-proof mechanisms
Governance	Led by Ethereum Foundation & global community	Governed by OP token holders & the Optimism Collective
Compatibility	Native Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM)	Full EVM compatibility – seamless dApp migration
Data Storage	All transaction data is stored on-chain	Off-chain computation, with transaction summaries posted to Ethereum
Upgrade & Development	Slow and conservative – may require hard forks	More flexible – OP Stack allows modular upgrades
Fund Transfer (To L2)	Direct wallet transfers	L1 → L2 via bridges – fast and low-cost
Fund Withdrawal (From L2)	Immediate	~7-day “challenge period” for fraud detection
Decentralization	High – maintained by thousands of nodes	Medium – currently uses a centralized sequencer (decentralization is planned)
Developer Experience	Rich infrastructure but expensive testing environment	Uses same EVM tools – affordable for experimentation
Ecosystem Maturity	Most mature and extensive blockchain ecosystem	Rapidly growing – key projects include Velodrome, Base, Lyra
Scalability	Limited – ~15 transactions per second (TPS)	Significantly higher – theoretically thousands of TPS
Core Technology	Proof of Stake, zk-SNARKs integration	Optimistic Rollup, OP Stack, Sequencer, Fraud Proofs

A Balance of Speed ​​and Security

Optimism offers significantly faster transaction confirmations compared to the Ethereum mainnet. A central "sequencer" node connected to the network instantly queues transactions and includes them in blocks. This makes the user experience remarkably smooth. Security-wise, Optimism is based on Ethereum's main chain; final confirmation and records of all transactions are guaranteed on the Ethereum blockchain. This architecture allows users to enjoy high-performance without compromising security. (Note: Due to the Optimistic rollup structure, there is a one-week objection period for transactions made on the network; this is a mechanism that supports system security.)

A Multi-Chain Ecosystem with a "Superchain" Vision

One of Optimism's long-term goals is to implement the "Superchain" concept, which combines multiple Layer-2 networks under a single umbrella. In line with this vision, different projects can launch their own Optimism-compatible L2 chains with the OP Stack infrastructure, and these chains can share a common security and communication layer. Once fully implemented, the Superchain will increase interoperability across networks, providing a unified experience for users and developers as if it were a single, larger chain. This approach transforms Optimism from a pure Layer-2 solution into a centralized platform that scales across the entire Ethereum ecosystem.

Who is the Founder of Optimism?

The Optimism project was launched by the Optimism Foundation, a non-profit organization. The project's founding team includes well-known figures in the Ethereum community: Jinglan Wang, Ben Jones, and Kevin Ho, known as the co-founders who laid the foundations for Optimism. This team consists of experienced developers who previously worked on Ethereum's Plasma and Rollup solutions. Optimism has been developed as an open-source project since its inception and continues to thrive, open to contributions from the Ethereum community. The Foundation's vision is to grow the project as a non-profit, public benefit project, and to add long-term value to the Ethereum ecosystem. To this end, the Optimism Foundation adopts a community-driven governance approach that redistributes a portion of the protocol's revenues to public goods and developers within the ecosystem through programs like RetroPGF.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

In this section, we've compiled some frequently asked questions about Optimism. Below, you can find concise and clear answers to key questions that both beginners and users familiar with the Ethereum ecosystem may have.

• What is Optimism and what does it do?: Optimism is a Layer-2 solution designed to scale the Ethereum blockchain. This network processes transactions on its own second layer instead of Ethereum's main chain, offering significantly lower fees and higher speeds. In short, it increases Ethereum's capacity and reduces its costs, enabling decentralized applications to run more efficiently. Thus, it provides an effective solution to the problems of congestion-related slowdowns and high gas fees on the Ethereum network.
• When was the OP token released, and what does it do?: OP, Optimism's native token, was released with the first airdrop in May 2022 and distributed to early adopters and project contributors. The OP token is essentially the project's governance token; token holders can vote on proposals affecting Optimism's future and participate in decision-making processes. In addition, the OP token can be used to pay transaction fees on the network and offers the opportunity to contribute to network security and earn rewards through staking. In short, OP plays a critical role in both the governance and economic incentive mechanisms of the Optimism ecosystem.
• What is the difference between Optimism and Arbitrum?: Optimism and Arbitrum are both Layer-2 optimistic rollup solutions developed for Ethereum, and their primary purpose is to increase Ethereum's scalability. While they share similar technology, there are some differences. The most significant difference is the fraud proof mechanism used to protect against fraudulent transactions: Optimism uses a single-round challenge mechanism, while Arbitrum employs a multi-round challenge process. As a result of this technical difference, Optimism can finalize transactions faster but may incur slightly higher gas fees compared to Arbitrum during busy Ethereum network periods. Furthermore, in terms of ecosystem size, Arbitrum initially had a higher total value locked (TVL) and more protocols; however, recent data indicates that the Optimism network is growing rapidly. While daily transaction numbers and active user metrics on Optimism began to increase in 2023, some stagnation was observed on Arbitrum's side. This suggests that the balance of power in the Optimism-Arbitrum competition may shift over time.
• What is Superchain, and why is it important?: Superchain is a vision put forward by Optimism and is still in development. According to this concept, multiple Layer-2 networks will be brought together using Optimism's underlying OP Stack technology, creating a massive, interconnected Layer-2 ecosystem. Once the Superchain is implemented, all OP Stack-based L2s, such as the Optimism mainnet and Coinbase's Base network, will share a common security and communication layer. This will enable seamless and secure asset transfers and messaging between different chains, and developers will be able to easily adapt code written for one chain to another. The importance of Superchain lies in its ability to horizontally extend Ethereum's scalability and lay the foundation for a multi-chain future. If successfully implemented, it will create a unified network structure where different projects can work together in the blockchain world, which could improve the user experience and accelerate adoption.
• Is trading on the Optimism network safe? Yes, trading on the Optimism network is considered safe. This is primarily because Optimism bases its security on the Ethereum mainnet. Even if transactions are executed on the second layer, all transaction data and updates are periodically sent to the Ethereum main chain and verified there. This means that transactions on Optimism are protected by Ethereum's proven security. The Optimistic Rollup structure works by assuming transactions are correct, but a challenge mechanism is in place in case of an erroneous or fraudulent transaction. In this context, withdrawals from Optimism to Ethereum are subject to a challenge period of approximately 7 days, during which anyone can challenge the transactions and verify their validity. This procedure ensures the safety of user funds and the prevention of fraudulent transactions. Ultimately, Optimism is designed to be as secure as Ethereum and provides a reliable second-layer environment for users as long as it operates properly.
• How is the future of the OP token assessed?: The future of the OP token will depend on the development of the Optimism network and the overall role of Layer-2 solutions within the crypto ecosystem. Many analysts and experts emphasize that if Ethereum maintains its central position in the coming years and the need for scalability continues to increase, the importance of L2 solutions like Optimism will grow. Optimistic scenarios predict that the Optimism ecosystem could expand significantly by 2025, and the OP token value could increase accordingly. For example, some market forecasts even suggest that the OP price could reach double-digit levels under a general bull market. However, the competitive landscape is a determining factor in the future of the OP token. The success of other Layer-2 and scaling projects, such as Arbitrum, zkSync, and Polygon zkEVM, could impact OP's market share. Optimism's growth rate could be limited, particularly if zk-rollup-based projects mature and become widespread. As a result, many experts argue that the OP token holds long-term potential, but for this to happen, the Optimism network must successfully implement its innovations (such as Superchain) and continue to attract users. Therefore, the OP token's fate is closely tied to the success of Ethereum's scalability solutions in general.

For more information on Optimism and Layer-2 projects contributing to the Ethereum ecosystem, follow the JR Kripto guide.