Skip to content
Ecosystem

With the Wasabi 1.0.0 Upgrade, Bitcoin’s First Layer 2 Rootstock Leaves Beta

With the Wasabi 1.0.0 Upgrade, Bitcoin’s First Layer 2 Rootstock Leaves Beta

The release brings significant improvements in performance, interoperability, storage and security, laying the foundation for Rootstock’s secure and scalable blockchain solutions mass adoption.

RootstockLabs, a key contributor to the Rootstock blockchain, announced today that its node upgrade, Wasabi 1.0.0, is up and running within the Rootstock infrastructure, formally taking the platform out of beta. The upgrade includes several advancements, including the introduction of Unitrie and Armadillo, Virtual Machine opcodes, transactions tracing methods, and new Rootstock native contracts.

Diego Zaldivar, former CEO of RootstockLabs and Co-founder of Rootstock, said of the release:
“With Wasabi, we’ve successfully launched out of beta into a stable product providing seamless integration between Bitcoin and Rootstock and laying the foundation for our sustainable scalability roadmap.”

A highlight of the upgrade is Rootstock’s unique scaling solution Unitrie, an evolution of the data structure within Rootstock blockchain that reduces required storage enabling further scalability.

Another key feature of the release is the improved compatibility with Ethereum through additional VM opcodes, notably CREATE2’s off-chain business logic validation, while the introduction of native contracts that allow smart contracts to verify Bitcoin transaction confirmations, more seamlessly integrate Rootstock with the Bitcoin blockchain. Both updates are in line with Rootstock’s vision of enabling an interoperable blockchain ecosystem.

The upgrade introduces the first phase of Rootstock’s innovative double-spend protection program Armadillo, which leverages the security of Rootstock’s merge-mining model to protect against overt attacks and significantly de-incentivize covered attacks.

Nodes now also require much less storage to run, improving on already high incentives for merge mining on the network.

Adrian Eidelman, RootstockLabs’ Chief Technical Officer, commented: “Wasabi release 1.0.0 is a significant step forward for Rootstock blockchain as it tackles improvements in key areas such as storage, scalability, security, and interoperability addressing that will be key to accelerate the platform adoption”

The RootstockLabs team reports that all critical nodes on the network – including mining pools, exchanges, and wallets – have been successfully upgraded. As Wasabi 1.0.0 is not compatible with previous versions, the team encourages anyone running a client node to visit the Github repository and complete the upgrade.

Rootstock has maintained its title as ‘the world’s most secure Smart Contract platform’ since it surpassed 45% of the hashing power of the Bitcoin network in February. Rootstock brings smart contract capabilities to the Bitcoin blockchain powered by a two-way 1:1 Bitcoin peg.

RootstockLabs recently opened its Innovation Studio in San Francisco. Offering technologies, community building, and educational resources, the Innovation Studio’s mission is to empower developers and startups looking to compete and innovate in the Decentralized Finance ecosystem. The Innovation tech team is currently focused on building an easy-to-use DeFi software environment for non-blockchain developers.

For more information about the Wasabi upgrade:

About RootstockLabs

RootstockLabs is a key contributor to Rootstock, the first, biggest, and longest-lasting Bitcoin layer 2. 

RootstockLabs specializes in pioneering innovative solutions within the blockchain space, empowering developers with funding, technology, and marketing support to expand the frontiers of decentralized technology and make Bitcoin work for everyone. 

Rootstock is the first, biggest, and longest-lasting Bitcoin sidechain. It is the only Bitcoin layer 2 that combines the security of Bitcoin’s proof-of-work, with Ethereum’s smart contract capabilities.

Rootstock is open-source, EVM-compatible, and secured by over 60% of Bitcoin’s hashing power, which makes it a gateway to a vibrant ecosystem of dApps that continues to evolve to become fully trustless. 

Website | X | Developer Portal | Discord | Youtube | Blog