The continued explosion of web3 technology has attracted many traditional businesses to enter the crypto space. However, some companies are having difficulty transitioning from Web 2.0 to web3. This is where Aurora hopes to bring value.
Aurora Labs provides a valuable service to professional businesses looking to expand into the web3 world. Its tools and technology also provide some exciting opportunities for cryptocurrency enthusiasts. Explore this guide to learn how crypto investors can profit from Aurora and the AURORA token.
What is Aurora?
Aurora is a blockchain ecosystem running on the NEAR Protocol. It is fully compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) and acts as a Layer 2 system that improves Ethereum’s scalability and usability.
History of Aurora
Aurora was founded in 2021 by Alex Shevchenko, a Ukrainian IT engineer specializing in high-performance computing. He holds a PhD in applied physics and mathematics, and has been a blockchain CTO and project lead for the past nine years. While working with Bitfury to develop one of the first Layer 2 enterprise blockchain platforms, Shevchenko became interested in blockchain opportunities. He eventually left Bitfury to work on NEAR, and while helping develop the NEAR ecosystem, Shevchenko saw its potential for Layer 2 applications. From this simple idea, the entire Aurora ecosystem was developed.
Aurora’s Goal
Aurora stands out from other Layer 2s built on the NEAR network due to its enterprise-focused attitude. The Aurora team recognizes that many Web 2.0 businesses are having difficulty transitioning to web3 design. Their goal is to simplify and optimize the entire process for Ethereum users. They started by addressing common complaints from companies, such as high gas fees discouraging users from using secure blockchain ledgers. Next, they aim to integrate a set of useful tools so companies can set up their own custom chains. Aurora hopes that these unique offerings will make it easier to move popular services like gaming and renewable energy into the web3 space.
How does Aurora work?
Aurora is based on a relayer architecture. It starts with a user sending a signed transaction to the Ethereum virtual machine. A remote procedure call on Aurora then wraps the Ethereum transaction into a NEAR transaction. The wrapped transaction is sent to the NEAR blockchain, where a smart contract decodes it and calculates the gas fee. The next step is to convert the transaction into an Aurora smart contract call. Finally, the Aurora engine executes the transaction, calculates the final transaction fee, and sends the transaction to its final destination.
Aurora features
The Aurora ecosystem contains a vast network of smart contracts and tools. Those interested in running projects on the Aurora engine can enjoy the following features.
Rainbow Bridge
Rainbow Bridge is an easy way to send information between the EVM, NEAR blockchain, and Aurora blockchain. The Aurora Bridge allows users to quickly send funds between different chains and works with a variety of wallets, including Coinbase, MetaMask, Rabby, and Brave. The bridge offers both desktop and mobile versions.
Aurora+
Aurora+ is a user account system that acts as a gateway to the Aurora network. Aurora and Ethereum users can log in with Aurora Pass and receive free transactions. The Aurora+ system also makes it easy to find apps or stake tokens. People can use it to earn rewards and explore all the exciting features offered by ecosystem partners.
Aurora Chain
Aurora is a comprehensive blockchain for designing projects. It is fully compatible with all Ethereum projects and easy to use. Ethereum developers can use all their standard designs on Aurora by simply changing the RPC endpoint. As a Layer 2, the Aurora blockchain offers greater scalability and lower fees than the Ethereum mainnet.
Aurora Pass
Aurora Pass is a wallet that offers a variety of benefits to ecosystem users. Users sign up using their email, Google ID, or Apple ID to use this convenient mobile app. It provides secure private keys without requiring a complicated onboarding process. Pass members also receive free transactions and password management options.
Aurora Cloud
Aurora Cloud is a special system for Web 2.0 users. It offers the same features as the basic series, but is designed to be simpler to use. Ecosystem partners designing projects on Aurora Cloud can enjoy easy-to-understand language, simple menus, and systems designed to comply with business regulations.
Aurora’s roadmap
In the three years since its founding, Aurora has launched its Layer 2 network and designed user features such as bridges and NFTs. Over the summer, Aurora plans to focus on developing its decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) and token. The Aurora team also plans to develop additional useful features, including faster Aurora bridges, stablecoin payments for transaction fees, and optimized user experience. For 2025, Aurora hopes to move to the sharded design that EVM is testing, hoping that the sharded version of Aurora will reduce high gas fees and improve transaction speeds.
AURORA Tokenomics
AURORA, an ERC-20 token, acts as the governance token for the Aurora DAO. Its fixed supply of 1 billion tokens will be allocated according to the following plan:
- DAO Treasury: 35.2%
- Community Treasury: 20%
- Aurora Labs Offer: 16%
- Aurora Labs Investor: 9%
- Aurora staking rewards: 5.9%
- Sponsorship Program: 3.1%
- Aurora validator reward: 3%
- Aurora Labs Growth Round: 3%
- Early contribution bonus: 2%
- Project consultant incentive: 1%
- Ecosystem launch: 1%
- Bug hunting: 0.8%
