Eclipse to release a Solana-compatible Layer 2 blockchain built for Polygon network

Eclipse, a Layer 2 developer, announced the upcoming release of Polygon SVM, a blockchain that is compatible with Solana and built for the Polygon network. 

The goal of Eclipse’s Polygon SVM blockchain is to allow Solana developers to move their apps to Polygon without having to rebuild their code for the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM). The Polygon SVM testnet is expected to launch in the first quarter of this year, with the mainnet expected to follow in the second quarter. 

Polygon SVM is a Layer 2 blockchain that uses the SeaLevel Virtual Machine (SVM), a computing environment that enables developers to deploy Rust-based Solana apps on other blockchains like Polygon.

How does it work?

Solana smart contracts can be natively run on Polygon SVM, meaning that the smart contracts can be kept the same and deployed directly to Polygon SVM. The blockchain will utilize Optimistic Rollups technology, similar to other Layer 2 projects, such as Arbitrum or Optimism, to create blocks. Rust developers will be able to transfer their code from Solana to Eclipse and run it on the Polygon network. Then, it can be settled back to Solana for added security using Rollups.

“The Polygon SVM assists Solana developers in migrating their apps to Polygon because it can natively run Solana smart contracts. You can keep all of your smart contracts the same and deploy them directly to Polygon SVM. Typically when you migrate from Solana to Polygon (using Polygon EVM), you have to rewrite all smart contracts for the EVM,” Neel Somani, founder of Eclipse, told The Block.

Polygon’s data availability protocol Avail will serve as the base layer for its Rollup, and the blockchain will communicate with both Polygon’s main network and Ethereum through cross-chain bridges, Somani said.

Eclipse raised $15 million in a pre-seed funding round in September and is a portfolio company of Polygon Ventures. It is also a grant recipient of the Solana Foundation.

Eclipse is not the only project working on expanding Solana apps to other blockchains. Nitro, another Layer 2 blockchain, is developing a network to deploy and execute Solana apps on Sei, a blockchain set to launch soon on Cosmos.