Base plans to introduce fault proofs this month, aiming for decentralization

Base, an Ethereum Layer 2 platform incubated by Coinbase, will implement permissionless fault proofs on Oct. 30 — aiming to decentralize the network and eliminate single-entity control.

“Fault proofs are coming to Base mainnet on October 30th, marking a key milestone on the path to decentralization,” Base stated.

Launched in August 2023, Base was developed with Optimism’s OP Stack package and has since grown to be the largest Layer 2 rollup on Ethereum by total value locked.

The introduction of fault proofs on Base is modeled after a similar deployment on Optimism’s flagship blockchain, OP Mainnet. Both chains are part of the Superchain ecosystem, which also includes other projects such as Zora, Mode, and Fraxtal.

Base noted its collaboration with Optimism on the upgrade that enables fault proofs. Fault proofs act as a mechanism for Ethereum Layer 2 networks, permitting users to challenge potentially fraudulent or incorrect transactions.

Before this upgrade, only a centralized proposer could submit output roots about the state of the Base network. This required users to rely on operators to report state roots to the mainnet accurately.

With fault proofs, any participant could make claims about the Base’s given state and challenge invalid withdrawals, thereby improving the network's security. 

Most optimistic rollup blockchains have yet to decentralize their networks by incorporating fault proofs and maintaining decentralized contract upgrades. Notable exceptions are Arbitrum and OP Mainnet, which already feature fault proofs.