Connext launches Token NEXT and establishes an Airdrop plan, focusing on cross-chain interoperability.

Recently, there have been frequent Airdrop activities in crypto projects. Following Cyber and Sei, the blockchain interoperability protocol Connext has also announced the launch of its native Token NEXT, with 10% of the total supply allocated for Airdrop. The NEXT Token will be available for claiming starting from September 5, and early users will be eligible for the Airdrop.

Connext was established in 2017 and is a "veteran" blockchain project. According to the data, Connext has gone through multiple rounds of financing and received investment support from several well-known institutions.

Over the past six years, Connext has adjusted its business focus multiple times in response to changes in the market environment. In the early stages of the project, it focused on the convenience of purchasing cryptocurrency with credit cards. It then shifted to the state channel technology of Ethereum's Layer 2 scaling solution to address payment issues. Later, as Rollup technology emerged victorious in the scaling competition, Connext turned its business to the current interoperability protocol.

Max, the growth lead of Connext, introduced that Connext is a layer that allows all Rollups to interact and is the only cross-chain solution that does not add new trust assumptions on top of connected blockchains. It enables developers and their cross-chain applications to access smart contracts, liquidity, and data on any chain, thereby unifying the fragmented ecosystem. Users can interact with decentralized applications from any chain using any Token, without leaving the application interface.

Regarding the airdrop mechanism, Connext uses a points system to determine the number of NEXT that users can receive. This system takes into account the liquidity supply of stablecoin exchange and the usage of cross-chain bridges, providing the highest point rewards to users who maintain stable usage.

After the launch of the DAO and the Token, Connext plans to expand to 20 layer two networks by the end of the year to promote the growth of the protocol and ecosystem.

Max emphasized that Connext is the first cross-chain bridge that connects Arbitrum and Optimism without the need for trust. Unlike other cross-chain solutions, Connext does not rely on additional oracles or external validators, directly connecting to the native bridges of the chains, thereby minimizing security risks.

To ensure the security of the protocol, Connext has multiple teams responsible for managing and operating the monitoring network in addition to multiple audits and an open bug bounty program. Once a potential malicious attempt is detected, the connection with the specific blockchain can be immediately halted.

Connext's modular architecture allows it to insert the most secure and trust-minimized transmission and verification layers. This enables Connext to not only transfer assets across different chains but also allows developers to create cross-chain applications for any use case, such as cross-chain lending.

"Chain abstraction" is a key concept of Connext, aimed at improving the user experience of decentralized applications by minimizing the user's need to pay attention to the chain they are on. Users can interact with the application from any supported chain without the need to switch networks or sign transactions on different chains.

There are multiple cross-chain applications in the Connext ecosystem (xApps) built. For example, the Fjord platform allows users to purchase tokens from any chain, while the Prode betting platform has achieved cross-chain betting functionality through Connext integration.

Looking ahead, Connext will focus on expanding the number of second-layer networks it supports and will continue to assist hundreds of developers who have already created revolutionary cross-chain applications. At the same time, Connext has also established partnerships with key industry players, which is expected to drive rapid growth of the protocol in the near future.