整理：Tia，Techub News

After nearly a decade of ups and downs in the cryptocurrency industry, Bitlayer co-founder Charlie Hu, with his extensive experience in top projects like Ethereum and Polkadot, is refocusing on the Bitcoin ecosystem. Together with another co-founder of Bitlayer, Kevin He, they are bringing stronger programmability and verification capabilities to Bitcoin through an innovative Layer2 solution—Opvm. In this exclusive interview, Charlie shares in detail the reasons for shifting from Polygon and Polkadot to Bitcoin, explaining how Bitlayer leverages cutting-edge technologies like ZK proofs and recursive verification to address the limitations of Bitcoin's smart contract functionality. Additionally, the interview explores the current competitive landscape of Bitcoin Layer2 technologies and explains the profound impact of the OP_CAT proposal on Bitcoin's future. Bitlayer's mission is to transform Bitcoin from merely being "digital gold" into a mainstream platform for DeFi and smart contracts.

Techub News: You have extensive experience in the crypto industry and have participated in several top projects. What prompted you to shift from Polygon and Polkadot to Bitcoin and co-found Bitlayer?

Charlie: I have been in the crypto industry for nearly 10 years, first encountering Bitcoin while starting a business in the Netherlands. At that time, I gradually learned how it worked by attending Bitcoin Meetup events. Initially, everyone was discussing Bitcoin as "digital gold," and later, I started purchasing Bitcoin through OTC, which officially brought me into the cryptocurrency world.

What truly made me decide to fully invest my career in this industry was attending Ethereum's Devcon in Berlin in 2015, when Ethereum was still a project driven by the "founding trio"—Charles Hoskinson, Gavin Wood, and Vitalik Buterin. Later, Charles went on to establish Cardano, while Gavin Wood led the development of Polkadot. At that time, I worked closely with the Polkadot team on many tasks, and by 2017, when the Polkadot project was officially established, I became one of the first round investors.

However, as the ecosystems of Ethereum and Polkadot developed, I gradually discovered some issues within the Polkadot ecosystem, such as high costs and developers increasingly moving towards EVM-compatible systems. Therefore, in 2021, I made a bold decision: to exit Polkadot and Cosmos entirely and ultimately choose Bitcoin as my new direction.

Techub News: What attracted you to work on Bitlayer? How did the Bitcoin ecosystem catch your attention?

Charlie: Bitcoin, as the largest blockchain asset, has a market cap of over $1 trillion, but much of the on-chain data is "dormant" and cannot participate in large-scale commercial applications like Ethereum. I see this as a significant potential waiting to be tapped, especially in areas like DeFi applications, smart contracts, and transaction verification.

The Bitcoin ecosystem has a natural anti-cyclical and anti-fragile quality, which has been validated during past bull and bear markets. With the U.S. launching Bitcoin ETFs, I believe the next bull market is likely to be driven by these institutions, further expanding Bitcoin's market cap and use cases.

Techub News: How do Bitlayer's BitVM (Bitcoin Virtual Machine) and Layer2 solutions work?

Charlie: The core of BitVM is to provide verification capabilities for Bitcoin. Bitcoin's block space is expensive, and it is based on the UTXO model, which is designed to be very simple but lacks smart contract capabilities. Through BitVM, we aim to achieve functionality similar to the Ethereum Virtual Machine using the existing Bitcoin scripting language without hard forking the Bitcoin mainnet.

We utilize ZK proof technology to complete transaction verification through logic gate circuits, reducing the cost of executing complex logic on Bitcoin. Additionally, we use recursive proofs to settle transactions on Layer2 back to the Bitcoin mainnet, ensuring their security. This is a crucial step for Bitcoin to become a true smart contract platform in the future.

Based on the above technological foundation, we have also innovatively proposed the Opvm technology roadmap, which we will detail to the market in the coming period regarding its implementation path and technical advantages.

Techub News: You mentioned the verification capabilities of Bitlayer's technology. How does it differ from other Layer2 solutions?

Charlie: Unlike other sidechain projects, Bitlayer is directly based on the Bitcoin mainnet for verification, rather than relying on external multi-signature sidechain solutions. In the past, many test chain projects attempted to implement smart contract functionality on Bitcoin, but many of these projects did not genuinely address the verification issues of the Bitcoin mainnet.

The biggest difference between us and other projects is that we focus on how to ensure that transaction verification can directly return to the Bitcoin mainnet to ensure the highest level of security. Through Opvm, we aim to achieve an efficient, low-cost Bitcoin Layer2 solution that allows developers to utilize the Bitcoin network for development without sacrificing security.

Techub News: What new developments does Bitlayer have in terms of globalization and ecosystem growth?

Charlie: The Bitlayer team is very international, with members distributed across countries like Europe, the U.S., India, Vietnam, and South Korea. Currently, we are developing well globally, especially with deep layouts in both Asian and Western markets. Bitlayer is also the first Bitcoin infrastructure project to receive strategic investment from Franklin Templeton, the issuer of the U.S. Bitcoin ETF.

At the developer level, we have supported many projects in landing and growing within the Bitcoin ecosystem through a series of technical support and resource connections. For example, we have empowered several DeFi and NFT projects by organizing developer events to ensure they can launch smoothly. In addition, we launched the Ready Player One developer airdrop incentive program, providing developers with support in funding, marketing, and financing to attract them to participate in building the Bitlayer ecosystem and achieve a win-win situation.

To support ecosystem projects, we have jointly initiated the first and second phases of the Head Mining Festival with multiple ecosystem projects to help them acquire users and provide users with richer Bitcoin ecosystem products. Currently, the Bitlayer ecosystem has deployed over 280 projects, with representative projects like Avalon Finance, Jasper Protocol, Pell Network, TrustIn, Enzo, and Marcaron all achieving good development.

Techub News: What is the current competitive landscape of Bitcoin's Layer2 ecosystem?

Charlie: In the past seven to eight months, the competitive landscape of Layer2 technology has changed significantly. Many projects have either ceased operations or transformed into other fields. Currently, there are mainly three types of Layer2 solutions in the Bitcoin ecosystem: one is EVM-based solutions aimed at allowing Ethereum developers to seamlessly transition to the Bitcoin ecosystem; another is Layer2 solutions based on ZK and fraud proofs. Some projects focus on specific application scenarios, such as Restaking and liquidity layers.

What makes Bitlayer unique is that we are not just creating an EVM-compatible Layer2; we are also enhancing the security verification capabilities of the Bitcoin mainnet, ensuring that all transactions on Layer2 can be securely settled back to the Bitcoin mainnet. This makes our solution not only powerful in functionality but also has greater security advantages than other sidechain projects.

Techub News: You mentioned the OP_CAT proposal for Bitcoin. What impact does it have on Bitlayer's development?

Charlie: OP_CAT is a proposal that has been widely discussed in the Bitcoin community, and it will bring more programmability to Bitcoin. If this proposal passes, Bitcoin will have stronger smart contract capabilities, allowing for more complex applications to run directly on the mainnet.

We fully support the OPCAT proposal and are making technical preparations for it. Even if OPCAT cannot pass in the next year, our BitVM can still achieve many functions through the existing scripting language. Our goal is to ensure that our technological roadmap can adapt to any changes in Bitcoin's future, maintaining technological foresight.

Techub News: How do the Bitcoin Layer2 ecosystem and the Ethereum Layer2 ecosystem differ?

Charlie: There are several key differences between the Bitcoin and Ethereum ecosystems. First, Bitcoin does not have a centralized governance organization like the Ethereum Foundation. Bitcoin's development is more decentralized, which provides greater freedom for innovators.

Secondly, while our development environment is EVM-compatible, we are not simply replicating the Ethereum ecosystem. The focus of development in the Bitcoin ecosystem is around Bitcoin assets, particularly in the areas of DeFi, smart contracts, and transaction verification. Bitcoin has strong anti-cyclical properties and a decentralized culture, which is quite different from the governance structure and development path of the Ethereum ecosystem.

Techub News: What is your vision for the future development of the Bitcoin ecosystem?

Charlie: We hope to make Bitcoin a truly programmable network through Bitlayer, not just "digital gold." We are collaborating with developers and communities worldwide to promote the widespread application of smart contracts and Layer2 technologies on the Bitcoin mainnet. Through the innovative Opvm solution, we are committed to making Bitcoin a mainstream platform for deploying and developing innovative projects in DeFi, NFTs, and recently popular areas like DePin, AI, and RWA.

In the coming months, we will continue to release technical updates and collaborate with more developer communities globally to promote the prosperous development of the Bitcoin ecosystem.

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