Somnia, a Layer 1 blockchain developed by UK-based metaverse technology company Improbable, has gone live with its mainnet and introduced its native token, SOMI.
The rollout follows a six month testnet phase in which the network processed more than 10 billion transactions, onboarded 118 million unique wallet addresses, and attracted over 70 ecosystem partners, according to a press release.
The Somnia Foundation said the testnet also saw Somnia process 1.9 billion transactions in a single day, a record for an EVM-compatible blockchain. CoinDesk could not verify the claims due to the testnet block explorer being offline at the time of writing.
“During the testnet we had users using applications to test the network like a mainnet would be tested,” Somnia founder Paul Thomas said in an email. “So we never hit our maximum throughput but that was because it was real users using applications. As the network grows its user and application base we expect this to scale.”
Somnia has onboarded 60 validators including Google Cloud, which also validates a number of other blockchains including Flare, Celo and Tezos.
The network claims to deliver throughput of over one million transactions per second with sub-second finality and low fees as it looks to become the most efficient blockchain network for decentralized finance (DeFi) and gaming.
At mainnet debut, the network is integrated with protocols and tools such as LayerZero, Sequence, Ankr, DIA, and Thirdweb. Its initial ecosystem includes gaming and social applications like Variance, Maelstrom and Sparkball.
The SOMI token will be used for transaction fees, validator rewards, and governance.
“It is the first blockchain designed for the speed, scale, and responsiveness required to power real-time virtual experiences, laying the foundation for an open digital asset economy where billions can actually interact, transact, and exchange value across immersive environments,” said Herman Narula, founder and CEO of Improbable.
