Table of Contents
TL;DR
- BNB Chain’s ecosystem is undergoing continuous evolution, with AI being a key milestone in its development roadmap.
- Thanks to its multi-chain strategy, BNB Chain has successfully integrated AI-related businesses into the Web3 domain.
- Looking ahead, BNB Chain and its ecosystem are set to provide more refined and appealing features, specifically designed for AI and associated industries.
In Part Three, we’ll see how the BNB Chain ecosystem and its multi-chain strategy are uniquely positioned as AI-friendly infrastructures solutions. Before we begin, you may want to check out Part One and Part Two of this series:
BNB Chain’s Multi-Chain Strategy
At present, there are 3 main blockchains in the BNB Chain ecosystem:
- BNB Smart Chain (BSC, Layer 1 blockchain)
- opBNB (Layer 2)
- BNB Greenfield (Decentralized storage blockchain)
Please note that discussions about BNB Chain often include references to BNB Beacon Chain (BC) and zkBNB, which are commonly mentioned within the BNB Chain ecosystem. This article doesn’t aim to extensively introduce these two blockchains, as there are already ongoing discussions and proposals regarding the merger of BC and BSC (and zkBNB into opBNB).
BNB Chain’s multi-chain strategy has several key features:
- BNB is the governance token that fuels the BNB Chain ecosystem. It is responsible for powering smart contracts, staking for governance, and representation of asset data.
- BSC and opBNB as EVM-based execution layers (L1 and L2)…
- BSC provides the consensus guarantee, as the baseline of integrity assurance.
- opBNB provides high throughput and scalability, to satisfy high performance transaction requirements.
- BNB Greenfield as the data storage layer with ownership and access control.
How will BNB Chain’s multi-chain strategy help with AI?
BNB Chain offers a sophisticated and efficient infrastructure, seamlessly enabling participants in the AI industry to transition to and leverage Web3 technologies with ease. It facilitates the integration of comprehensive AI-on-Web3 solutions into the BNB ecosystem, effectively incorporating many of the key advantages of Web3 into its architecture.
The following visual shows how the BNB Chain helps in different stage of the AI pipeline:
Now, let’s take a deep dive to understand each component of this.
BNB Smart Chain – BSC
BSC, as the foundational Layer 1 blockchain within the BNB Chain ecosystem, stands out for its EVM compatibility, offering significantly lower transaction costs and enhanced throughput compared to Ethereum. To achieve this superior performance and cost-efficiency in executing transactions, BSC has implemented a series of modifications to the original Ethereum codebase.
- Performance enhancements
- Use of a PoSA (Proof-of-Stake-Authority) consensus engine: This makes BSC more scalable and energy efficient.
- Decreasing block time from 13 seconds to 3 seconds: Makes BSC transactions faster and more efficient.
- Additional features: Has the ability to issue and use BEP20 tokens.
- Fast finality: Enhances BSC’s efficiency and the user experience by speeding up the block finalization time.
- Parallel EVM (WIP): This will improve transaction execution performance by introducing parallel execution techniques.
- Cost reduction
- Reducing transaction fees: Makes BSC more affordable to use.
- Path-Based-Storage-Scheme (PBSS): Enhances the performance of storage access and reduces storage costs by introducing advanced algorithms in storage.
- Other on-going optimizations
- The BNB Chain community is actively improving BSC in all aspects. Ranging from functional to performance.
For AI enterprises exploring the Web3 domain, BSC presents an attractive blend of features that streamline integration into the Web3 environment and bolster AI innovation.
Firstly, BSC offers a solid foundation for BNB token monetization, equipping AI developers with tools to efficiently monetize their AI models, services, data, and decentralized applications (DApps). This promotes a viable economic framework in the AI sector, spurring ongoing development and wider adoption.
Secondly, the EVM compatibility of BSC enables programmability. AI developers can apply their existing Ethereum development skills to effortlessly transfer their Ethereum DApps to the BSC network. This minimizes the learning curve and expedites the creation of AI-driven applications on BSC.
Thirdly, BSC’s Parlia consensus engine assures transaction security and consensus. This instills trust and transparency in the AI ecosystem, reducing security risks and safeguarding user funds and data.
Finally, BSC acts as a gateway to access resources across the BNB Chain ecosystem, including platforms like opBNB and BNB Greenfield. The broader BNB Chain ecosystem offers seamless programmability, facilitating easy data transition and computation across BSC, opBNB, and BNB Greenfield. This broadens the scope for AI applications, allowing them to access specialized features and enhance their functionality.
BNB Optimistic Rollup – opBNB
opBNB employs Layer 2 optimistic rollup technology, strategically targeting scalability improvements and user experience enhancement within the BNB Smart Chain ecosystem. This approach delivers superior transaction processing speeds (TPS) and lower gas expenses compared to Layer 1 counterparts like BSC. Here is a detailed overview of its essential features:
- Scalability Improvements: By leveraging optimistic rollup technology, opBNB seeks to overcome the scalability constraints of the BNB Smart Chain.
- Enhanced Throughput and Reduced Costs: Moving transaction execution from Layer 1 to Layer 2 allows for better throughput and lower transaction costs.
- Optimization of Execution Performance: By speeding up transaction execution on Layer 2, opBNB aims to improve the overall performance of smart contract execution, resulting in faster transaction confirmations and a smoother user experience. Here is the comparison of opBNB and other L2 solutions:
| opBNB* | Optimism | Arbitrum | |
| Gas Token | BNB | ETH | ETH |
| VM | EVM | EVM | EVM |
| Gas Fees | $0.001 | $0.05 | $0.1 |
| Block Gas Limit | 100M | 30M | 32M |
| Block time | 1s | 2s | 0.25s(Min) |
| Withdrawal/Finality | 7 days | 7 days | 7 days |
| TPS (Transfer) | 4500+ | 700+ | 4000+ |
(* The latest opBNB roadmap has a more ambitious target with 10,000 TPS and 0.001 gas fees, as well as improvements. Details can be found here.)
- Dependency on L1 Consensus Engine: While offloading transactions to Layer 2, opBNB relies on the BSC consensus mechanism to guarantee the integrity and security of the execution results. This dependency ensures that the results derived from Layer 2 execution are validated and secured by the underlying Layer 1 network.
Here is a comparison of opBNB to other L1 solutions:
| opBNB | BSC | Ethereum | |
| Gas Token | BNB | BNB | ETH |
| VM | EVM | EVM | EVM |
| Gas Price Model | EIP-1559 | Gas Price Auction | EIP-1559 |
| Block Gas Limit | 100M | 140M | 30M |
| Block time | 1s | 3s | 12s |
| Transaction Cost | $0.005 | $0.03 | $1 |
From an AI standpoint, opBNB is finely tuned for reduced latency, enhanced throughput, and superior execution performance. This makes it particularly beneficial for AI applications that require high processing speeds and immediate responsiveness. Use cases like vehicle motion recognition, chatbots, or other scenarios heavily dependent on AI models stand to gain significantly from the performance enhancements offered by opBNB’s Layer 2 infrastructure.
The proposed workflow involves AI users initially securing BNB tokens on the BSC Chain and then depositing them into opBNB as the funding source. The interaction between BSC and opBNB is responsible for ensuring the integrity and validation of the processed results. This way, users can focus on running their AI tasks on opBNB without the hindrances associated with the slower processing and consensus mechanism characteristics of Layer 1 blockchains.
Overall, leveraging opBNB’s L2 capabilities for AI operations facilitates improved performance, reduced latency, and expedited processing times. This aligns with the requirements of real-time AI applications, all while maintaining the integrity and security of the processed data.
BNB Greenfield
BNB Greenfield is an innovative blockchain platform that aims to empower individuals and businesses by providing a decentralized and secure ecosystem for data storage, ownership, and monetization. Central to its design is the “data-as-an-asset” principle, which puts users at the forefront, giving them control over their personal information and the opportunity to capitalize on its value.
BNB Greenfield’s unique features render it an attractive option for AI applications in terms of data access, ownership, and monetization. Its decentralized architecture, user-centric approach, and emphasis on data privacy align perfectly with the evolving principles of Web3. It empowers individuals and businesses to participate in a more equitable and transparent data ecosystem. Here’s a closer look at how BNB Greenfield’s features support AI development and deployment:
- Decentralized Data Storage: BNB Greenfield’s decentralized data storage mechanism breaks down the reliance on centralized data silos, enhancing data security and privacy. This distributed approach is crucial for AI applications that handle sensitive data, ensuring that sensitive information is not concentrated in a single point of vulnerability.
- User-Centric Data Ownership: BNB Greenfield’s user-centric data ownership model allows individuals and organizations to retain full control over their data. This means that AI developers can access and utilize data with user consent, ensuring transparency, ethical data practices, and compliance with data privacy regulations.
- Granular Data Access Control: BNB Greenfield’s granular data access control system provides users with the ability to define specific permissions for data sharing. This granular control is essential for AI applications that require access to sensitive data while maintaining user privacy. Developers can tailor data access rules to specific use cases, ensuring that only relevant data is shared and only for the intended purpose.
- Data Monetization Opportunities: BNB Greenfield facilitates data monetization by providing a platform for users to sell access to their data to companies or organizations for research, training, or other purposes. This democratization of data ownership allows individuals and businesses to benefit from the value of their data, incentivizing data sharing for AI purposes and fostering a data-driven economy.
- Data Marketplaces and Crowdsourcing: BNB Greenfield’s infrastructure can support the development of data marketplaces and crowdsourcing platforms. These platforms can connect AI developers with data providers, facilitating the acquisition of high-quality data for AI training and development. This democratization of data access expands the possibilities for AI innovation by enabling developers to access diverse and specialized datasets.
- DataFi: BNB Greenfield’s data-focused ecosystem lays the groundwork for the creation of cutting-edge DataFi solutions. DataFi, integrating financial tools and services with blockchain technology, revolutionizes the way data assets are created, owned, and managed. This development unlocks new opportunities for AI applications, allowing for the innovation of financial products and services driven by data.
BNB Greenfield, by tackling the complexities of data access, ownership, and security, lays a foundation for a fairer and more effective data ecosystem. This initiative fosters innovation and growth within the AI sector.
The Greenfield Wishlist
To gain insights into the future trajectory of BNB Chain, exploring the wishlists for BSC, opBNB, and Greenfield is advisable. These lists feature a range of promising initiatives set for implementation by the community. Specifically, certain aspects outlined in the Greenfield list hold the potential to offer substantial advantages to the field of AI.
- Publishing Platform: Envisioned as a platform for publishing “data” on Greenfield, it serves as a hub for AI model publication. Here, trainers can upload their trained models to Greenfield and utilize BSC’s smart contracts to facilitate the sale or rental of these models. Model users, in turn, can acquire usage rights to the data through these smart contracts.
- Content Sharing Platform & Personal Data Marketplace BNB Greenfield: These two initiatives can be viewed as comprehensive solutions for data sharing and protection. Given the importance of data in AI, these initiatives offer robust methods for data sharing and monetization. This approach enhances data availability and integrity, significantly contributing to the quality of AI training and modeling.
- Decentralized AI Training – AI Labeling: This solution is poised to enhance the accuracy of machine learning algorithms, particularly in supervised learning. By offering a data labeling service on Greenfield, it ensures that raw data is accurately and high-quality “tagged.” This level of precise labeling is essential for the success of supervised learning algorithms.
Conclusion
The BNB Chain ecosystem provides a comprehensive solution for AI on Web3. Here’s a summary of the key components and their roles:
- BSC as L1: BSC serves as the main layer for tokenization, value transfer, and transaction settlement, ensuring the integrity and security of the ecosystem.
- opBNB as L2: opBNB enables efficient execution of complex AI algorithms and computations, scaling the AI capabilities of the ecosystem.
- BNB Greenfield: BNB Greenfield provides a secure and reliable infrastructure for storing and managing AI data, enabling data-driven AI applications.
Together, these components work in tandem to form a robust AI infrastructure that supports the development and deployment of AI applications on Web3. The BNB Chain ecosystem empowers developers to create innovative AI solutions while ensuring data security, integrity, and value capture.
