Aptos: The Scalable Blockchain Tech That Competes with Ethereum

In this article, we delve into Aptos, one of the most scalable blockchain techs in the crypto landscape that competes as an alternative to Ethereum. This project is particularly interesting because it uses its own programming language and an advanced on-chain architecture.

Aptos is a next-generation blockchain technology that was launched in October 2022 by Avery Ching and Mo Shaikh. The network is designed to be a competitor to Ethereum, capable of supporting smart contracts and sustaining a high throughput of requests in a short time. It self-defines as the largest production-ready blockchain in the world, with metrics that make even the most structured networks envious. At its peak, it reached 13.3K TPS, with over 4.7 million monthly active users and 1.8 billion transactions since the launch on mainnet. Aptos has 400 blockchain nodes and 148 validator nodes.

The network integrates a Proof-of-Stake consensus mechanism that leverages the economic commitment of the native resource APT for internal security. The architecture is at the same time combined with a BFT consensus protocol for collectively processing the transactions of the validators. Additionally, it integrates a parallel execution engine called Block-STM that allows simultaneous operation with multiple requests on the blockchain.

Not to forget that Aptos was built using the smart programming language Move, originating from the Diem (ex Libra) project. Its structure makes it perfect for the distribution of smart contracts and for the exploration of technologies related to the bull and bear world of web3.

Since its inception, Aptos has raised 350 million dollars in VC funding, led by Coinbase Ventures, FTX Ventures, and FTX Ventures.

The advanced tech of Aptos presents numerous use cases in the virtual world, and offers many advantages compared to other blockchains in the sector. First of all, thanks to its scalability, the crypto network of Aptos proves to be a perfect environment for the gaming world, where a rapid and fluid interaction experience is necessary. On the front of NFTs, the chain offers maximum creative freedom in designing successful collections, as in the cases of Bruh Bears and MAVRIK NFT. In the social sphere, it guarantees complete control of one’s social footprint, thanks to on-chain apps like Chingari. Moving on to DeFi, here too the Aptos blockchain appears as an ideal place to launch decentralized applications and smart contracts. To give an idea of the potential of this tech, consider that Mastercard is even building an identity verification tool on the network. The goal of the electronic payment provider is to ensure interoperability and security in the blockchain to ride the future trend of decentralized finance.

Regarding the advantages of the Aptos network on a technical level, we highlight the low latency, high throughput, and low fees for users. This type of blockchain is ideal for developers who require speed and efficiency, with transaction verification times of less than 1 second. To give an idea, with Aptos you can mint 1 million NFTs in 90 seconds!

Other advantages include unprecedented security, enabled by the formal verifier Move Prover. This verifies the behavior of Aptos smart contracts written on the blockchain, preventing cyber incidents.  

Not to forget finally the improvements introduced by the integration between PoS, BF, and Block-STM, which serve as a trademark of Aptos. Thanks to these technological innovations, it is ensured that consensus is reached even when some validatori are unreliable.

Taking a look at the on-chain data on Aptos, it becomes evident how this tech is being used more and more intensively by users in the blockchain industry. Since its inception at the end of 2022, the network has more or less consistently increased the number of active addresses within it. In recent weeks there has been a real boom in the metric, with the active addresses that have reached a new ATH above 550,000 units.

At the beginning of the year, the blockchain had just 80,000 active addresses, highlighting a growth of 687% YTD.

To highlight how the number of new entities that begin to interact for the first time with Aptos is also on the rise since January. This is probably due to the airdrop incentives carried out by the project and the presence of particularly attractive tech full of speculative opportunities.

Another very interesting data point that reflects the health of the Aptos blockchain concerns the trend of network fees. After the April upgrade that introduced Move V1.3, transactions have become less heavy and network fees have been reduced by about 90%. In a few days, the average fees have gone from 0.0075 APT to 0.00067 APT. This last value, equivalent to less than a cent of a dollar, then further decreased in the following months, reaching today 0.00015 APT. Using Aptos tech therefore appears very economical, as well as safe and efficient. It is clear that the increase in the user base, shown in the previous metric, is also a result of this context of economic convenience.

APT is a fundamental tech resource that underlies the Aptos blockchain. The cryptocurrency serves as the gas and governance token of the network, reflecting