Anatoly Yakovenko, co-founder of Solana, has sparked renewed debate in the blockchain industry by firmly rejecting the necessity of Layer-2 (L2) scaling solutions.
His comments directly challenge a growing consensus among developers that L2 networks provide essential benefits for blockchain scalability. The dispute emerges amid significant developments in both Solana's approach to data management and competing platforms' scaling strategies.
"There is no reason to build an L2. L1s can be faster, cheaper, and more secure," Yakovenko declared in response to claims that L2 solutions inherently outperform base blockchains. His position contradicts arguments from Ethereum builder rip.eth, who suggested that L2 networks avoid the high costs and consensus risks associated with maintaining a complete Layer-1 (L1) blockchain.
The exchange began when rip.eth highlighted Eclipse, a Solana Virtual Machine-based L2 that leverages Ethereum for security, as an example of combining Solana's performance with Ethereum's established security model. Yakovenko dismissed this approach, countering that L2 solutions introduce unnecessary complexity and additional security concerns through their reliance on L1 data availability systems, fraud proofs, and upgrade mechanisms.
Beyond the technical efficiency arguments, the conversation expanded to address fundamental questions about blockchain data storage capacity. When user Marty McFly questioned how networks would handle exponentially growing on-chain data, Yakovenko revealed that Solana currently generates approximately 80 terabytes of data annually. He characterized this volume as manageable for businesses but challenging for individual validators.
This prompted further scrutiny from decentralization advocate Alan, who questioned Solana's strategy for managing unused storage given its inactive state rent mechanism. "What is Solana's plan to offload unused storage given the current state rent mechanism is not turned on," Alan asked. Yakovenko clarified that Solana plans to store its ledger on decentralized solutions like Filecoin, indicating that offloading historical blockchain data to external storage providers forms part of the network's long-term strategy.
The timing of Yakovenko's stance against L2 networks coincides with significant shifts in Ethereum's fee structure. Recent reports from BeInCrypto indicate declining transaction fees on Ethereum, suggesting that L2 adoption has successfully reduced costs for users. This trend potentially undermines Yakovenko's argument that L1 blockchains alone can satisfy all scalability requirements without supplementary solutions.
The industry remains divided on optimal scaling approaches. Binance founder Changpeng Zhao recently initiated a parallel debate regarding whether artificial intelligence projects should be built on L1 or L2 networks, reflecting the same fundamental questions raised by Yakovenko and rip.eth about where future blockchain applications should operate most effectively.
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has taken a more balanced position. Six months ago, Buterin predicted the failure of certain L2 networks due to economic and security limitations. However, more recently, he outlined a comprehensive roadmap to scale both Ethereum's L1 and L2 protocols in 2025, acknowledging the complementary roles of both layers. "We need to continue building up the technical and social properties, and the utility, of Ethereum," Buterin wrote.
Yakovenko's emphatic position against L2 solutions highlights a growing philosophical divergence in blockchain scaling strategies.
While Solana pursues maximizing L1 capabilities and plans to integrate with decentralized storage solutions for its expanding data needs, Ethereum continues developing a dual-layer approach that balances base layer improvements with specialized L2 networks. The contrasting approaches represent fundamentally different visions for blockchain architecture as the technology continues evolving to meet increasing demands.