Coinbase has announced a significant change to the infrastructure of its Base Ethereum Layer-2 network.
The company announced that Base will be moving away from the current OP Stack architecture it is built upon and transitioning to a “unified Base stack” structure that is entirely operated by Base.
OP Price Drops After Coinbase Announces Abandoning OP Stack Architecture
Following this development, Optimism (OP) experienced a sharp drop in price.
With this transition, node operators will need to follow versions published through Base’s own GitHub repository, base/base, instead of Optimism releases. Coinbase stated that more detailed information will be provided closer to the transition date.
Base was initially launched on the OP Stack, developed by Optimism. Over time, features like Flashblocks were integrated through collaborations with ecosystem representatives such as Flashbots and Paradigm.
However, this model resulted in a complex structure with numerous external dependencies. Coinbase is now aiming to create a simpler and more controllable infrastructure by transitioning to a unified Base stack architecture that brings all dependencies and future innovations together in one place.
The company added that Base’s rapid growth was driven by the world-class technology offered by OP Stack, and that they would now be transitioning to a more independent and agile development process.
Coinbase stated that this transformation has three main objectives:
Thanks to the new structure, instead of three major hard forks per year, smaller, more frequent hard forks (six times a year) are planned. This allows for more controlled and regular updates instead of a build-up of risks all at once.
The goal is to reduce the protocol specification and codebase to a level understandable by a single developer. By focusing solely on Base’s needs, the aim is to minimize cognitive load.
Coinbase adopts the approach of “Base wins when Ethereum wins.” In this context, it is planned to implement some high-impact updates on Base prior to L1, providing data for the Ethereum roadmap.
No urgent action is required from users today. Base will continue to operate in compliance with the OP Stack specification, and existing RPCs will continue to be supported.