Soaring Xai Adoption Propels L2 and L3 Throughput To All-Time High

The daily throughput of Ethereum Layer 2 networks is at a new all-time high.

On June 16, Layer 2 and Layer 3 networks processed an average combined throughput of 246.3 transactions per second (TPS), according to L2beat. The recent spike in activity eclipsed the previous high of 183.4 TPS from early April.

The milestone was driven by rocketing activity on Xai, a gaming-focused Layer 3 network co-developed by OffChain Labs — the team behind Arbitrum. Xai hosted 101.7 TPS on average over 24 hours, marking a nearly 9,000% increase in seven days.

The surge in activity was propelled by the June 10 launch of Vanguard: Genesis, which Xai described as offering a “full suite of new games and rewards” to its users.

Xai was not the only Ethereum scaling solution to post impressive activity on June 16, with Base coming in second with nearly 33 TPS — just 11.5% shy of its all-time high.

Proof Of Play Apex, a Layer 3 hosting the recently booming Pirate Nation web3 game, also posted an all-time high TPS of nearly 16 TPS to rank fourth among Ethereum scaling solutions on June 16. Taiko, a Layer 2 rollup, ranked sixth behind Ethereum with a record high of 11.6 — a 910% gain over the past seven days.

Layer 3 emerges as popular architecture for gaming

The surge in activity on Xai and Proof Of Play Apex comprise the latest examples of Layer 3 networks proving themselves as a preferred architecture for web3 games.

Layer 3 networks comprise dedicated appchains hosting a single decentralized application and are typically built on top of Layer 2 networks — allowing them to leverage Layer 1 networks such as the Ethereum mainnet for security and transaction finalization.

Xai utilizes Arbitrum’s modular Orbit infrastructure, while Pirate Nation leverages Proof Of Play’s multichain architecture for Layer 3s.

Layer 3s have also emerged as a popular solution for appchains outside of the web3 gaming niche that demand high throughput, including decentralized social media, decentralized exchanges, and mainstream financial applications.

Xai quickly attracts millions of users

With the backing of OffChain Labs, Xai appears poised to quickly emerge as a contender within the on-chain gaming space.

Last August, Xai launched its Odyssey testnet campaign, offering up 5% of the XAI token’s supply as rewards to early users. The campaign hosted 5 million daily transactions from more than 500,000 wallets.

Xai said its mainnet genesis campaign also offers rewards in the form of points to both players and developers. “Developers and studios will be able to participate in a series of builder quests to score points on the Xai Vanguard: Genesis leaderboard and earn their own series of rewards,” the project said.

The network has already onboarded nearly 1.3 million one week after launching its Genesis campaign. Xai said multiple third-party games are set to launch on the network during Genesis, including Crypto Unicorns, Final Form, and Lost Glitches.

According to Chainbroker, Xai has raised $10.4 million in three funding rounds, offering up tokens at $0.01, $0.032, and $0.035 in each round with 24-month vesting periods and six-month cliffs.

XAI last changed hands for approximately $0.56 after sliding 8.8% in 24 hours and 21% in seven days, according to CoinGecko.