The Silent Ones in the Web3 Field: Polkadot's New Execution Environment PolkaVM Draws Attention

Polkadot, as an important project in the Web3 field, has always been known for its advanced technology and innovative concepts. It has pioneered the paradigm of modular blockchains, achieving innovative functions such as cross-chain interoperability, secure sharing, and rapid chain initiation, and was once on par with Ethereum. However, despite its advanced technology, Polkadot has always maintained a certain distance from ordinary users.

Recently, Polkadot launched a new execution environment called PolkaVM, which has sparked widespread attention in the industry. PolkaVM is not just a simple compatibility layer, but a fundamental rewrite. It is based on the RISC-V architecture, a modern register-based chip architecture designed to replace the traditional EVM stack logic. This change brings higher execution efficiency and lower resource consumption, while also being closer to the hardware layer.

The main features of PolkaVM include:

1. Register architecture and 64-bit design, closer to modern CPUs, improving execution efficiency.
2. Multi-dimensional Gas model, supporting multi-dimensional measurement such as execution time, memory, cross-contract, and ZK operations.
3. Compatible with the Solidity toolchain, allowing direct use of tools like Remix, Hardhat, and MetaMask.
4. Multilingual potential, with future integration of the LLVM toolchain, natively supporting development languages such as Rust and C.
5. Optimize user experience by automatically hiding complex logic and simplifying the interaction process.

Currently, PolkaVM has been launched on the Westend testnet, allowing developers to connect directly for testing.

Compared to other "new virtual machines" that are still in the theoretical stage, PolkaVM has completed several key real-world deployments. The V2 version of a certain DEX has been successfully deployed on the PolkaVM test network, proving its capability to support complex AMM systems. Additionally, the institutional-grade multi-signature system Safe has also achieved trustless operation on PolkaVM for the first time, showcasing PolkaVM's ability to handle the security of significant on-chain funds.

Although PolkaVM adopts a brand new architecture at the underlying level, it maintains compatibility with existing development tools. Developers can use Remix for online writing, compiling, and deploying Solidity contracts, use Hardhat for local development and testing, and complete DApp construction and interaction through MetaMask and Ethers.js. This design of "changing the kernel without changing the habit" greatly reduces the learning cost for developers.

However, PolkaVM still faces some challenges. Currently, the ecosystem is still in the validation stage, and mainstream contract forms such as stablecoins, NFT protocols, and lending markets have not yet been fully launched on PolkaVM. Although the toolchain is available, it is still incomplete, lacking an officially packaged TypeScript SDK, CLI tools, and deployment templates. Furthermore, as it is still in the testnet phase, the official detailed incentive plan has not yet been announced.

Nevertheless, the emergence of PolkaVM provides a rare opportunity for small teams. In the current ecosystem that is relatively sparse, early participants find it easier to gain follow and support. For teams willing to take a step ahead, this could be an important opportunity before the next round of ecosystem explosion.

The launch of PolkaVM is not the end of Polkadot's development, but rather the beginning of the reconstruction of its execution layer. With the completion of the migration of the relay chain functionality to the Asset Hub, Polkadot is transitioning from an "engineering marvel" to "truly usable". In the future, PolkaVM is expected to support more complex on-chain business logic and may even accommodate high-intensity scenarios such as AI agents and on-chain reasoning.

Polkadot offers developers a unique growth path: first testing product logic with smart contracts, then seamlessly migrating to a dedicated independent application chain. This "progressive scalability" strategy stands out in the public chain ecosystem.

The launch of PolkaVM demonstrates Polkadot's ongoing efforts in technological innovation. While it does not propose an entirely new narrative, it provides new possibilities for the development of Web3 through updates to the underlying execution model and system philosophy. True technological breakthroughs are often hidden in these underlying evolutions that can actually run, are compatible with existing systems, and have growth potential.