Introduction

BlobScriptions, introduced by Ethereum, use blob technology to make data storage and transmission cheaper and more efficient. Like Bitcoin’s inscriptions, BlobScriptions lets users embed different data types directly onto the Ethereum blockchain. When this blob feature was launched, it temporarily increased Ethereum gas fees. In this article, we will explain what BlobScriptions are and how they work straightforwardly.

What is Blob Technology?

In various Rollup solutions, to ensure data can be accessed and verified, it must be uploaded to the Ethereum mainnet (Layer 1). This data must be publicly stored on Layer 1 to be checked when needed. EIP-4844 introduces a new type of transaction that carries “blobs” of data, enhancing Ethereum’s data availability in a forward-compatible way. These blob-carrying transactions are essential for scaling Ethereum because they provide a dedicated space for large data blobs that are necessary for data availability but do not need to be executed.

This new type of transaction, called a Blob, has two key features:

1. The data in a Blob cannot be directly read within a smart contract: This data only needs to be stored without being actively read or verified.
2. Blobs are stored for 18 days: This design ensures nodes only need to store data for a short time, necessary for synchronization. Entities interested in the data take on the task of storing the complete historical data. Currently, Ethereum stores data for only 18 days.

Blobs can be seen as temporary storage, allowing the data from Layer 2 transactions to be moved to these new temporary Blobs instead of being permanently stored on Layer 1. This greatly reduces storage costs on Layer 1 and makes it easier to store large amounts of data, helping with scalability. Previously, Rollups had to upload data to Layer 1 as calldata. After the Dencun upgrade, Layer 2 data can be transmitted to Layer 1 as Blobs at a lower cost and without needing permanent storage like calldata.

What are BlobScriptions?

BlobScriptions are a type of Ethereum inscription that uses EIP-4844 blobs to store extra data. Introduced in a March upgrade to the Ethereum network, blobs provide a cost-effective way to store data on the blockchain. Some developers have taken advantage of this by creating “Blobscriptions,” which significantly lower the cost of creating inscriptions on Ethereum. According to @dumbnamenumbers, it costs less than $5 to inscribe 768 KB of data on Ethereum using Blobscriptions. This is because blobs have made data storage on Ethereum 10 to 100 times cheaper.

The Significance of Blobs for Blobscriptions

Blobscriptions leverage the blob space introduced by EIP-4844 to establish a decentralized platform for recording and preserving data.

• Decentralized Data Storage: They use blob space to securely and permanently store large datasets on the Ethereum blockchain.
• Improved Scalability: By moving substantial data storage needs off the main chain, Blobscriptions help Ethereum scale more efficiently, leading to faster transactions and lower fees.
• Data Persistence: Blobscriptions use the blob space from EIP-4844 to ensure that inscribed data remains permanently on the blockchain, making it accessible and unchangeable.
• Security and Transparency: Every inscription is recorded transparently on the blockchain, offering secure and verifiable data records.

Understanding Blobs and Inscriptions

Blob: In EIP-4844, a Blob is a large data packet stored within an Ethereum block. Blobs are designed to increase the network’s data capacity without executing the data, offering an efficient way to scale the blockchain. Inscription: Inscription means permanently recording data on the blockchain. Blobscriptions extend this idea by storing large datasets in Blobs, providing a new way to ensure data remains unchangeable and permanently available.

How do BlobScriptions Work?

BlobScriptions, like Bitcoin inscriptions, let users store various types of data, such as images, text, and even tokens, on Ethereum blobs. The unique thing about blobs is that they do not interact with smart contracts, and nodes only need to store them for 18 days, making them very cost-effective.

Here’s a step-by-step overview of how BlobScriptions work:

1. Data Preparation: You need to prepare the data content and specify its type (e.g., image, text).
2. Creating Blobs: The data payload is split into one or more blobs, each made up of 32-byte segments.
3. Sending Blobs: These blobs are sent as transactions to the Ethereum blockchain.
4. Retrieving Blobs: Tools like Ethscriptions indexers retrieve these blobs. They use the version hash to link blobs to specific transactions.
5. Decoding Blobs: Once the blobs are retrieved, they are decoded using a specific method. The decoded data includes the content and its type, creating an “Ethscription attachment” or BlobScription.
6. Accessing Data: Indexers provide access to the attachment content through their APIs.

Despite blobs being stored for only 18 days, Ethscriptions indexers and other decentralized data storage solutions ensure that the data is preserved and accessible as long as someone maintains it. This way, BlobScriptions can continue to be used effectively.

Comparing BlobScriptions with Bitcoin Inscriptions

Similarities

Data Storage Purpose: BlobScriptions and Ordinal inscriptions enable users to embed data directly onto the blockchain. This data can be text, images, or other digital content.
Immutable Storage: Once data is embedded in either BlobScriptions or Ordinal inscriptions, it becomes a permanent part of the blockchain ledger, which means it cannot be changed or deleted.

Differences

BlobScriptions and Bitcoin Ordinal inscriptions share similarities in data storage and immutability, but they differ significantly in blockchain platform, data storage method, introduction time, transaction type, cost, and data persistence.

Effects of BlobScriptions on Ethereum Gas Fees

When Layer 2 networks submit Blobs, they must pay additional Blob fees on top of the regular gas fees. In the few days following the launch of BlobScriptions, users have created over 4500 BlobScriptions. Data from Dune shows that up to 50% of newly generated Blobs are used for these inscription activities, causing the base fee for Blobs to rise to unusually high levels.

On March 14, Ethscriptions co-founder Middle March announced on X that the first Blobbed Ethscription had been successfully created. By March 28, Middle March tweeted again to announce the official launch of BlobScriptions.

Within just one hour of the BlobScriptions launch, the base gas price for Ethereum Blobs skyrocketed to 14,499,530 wei. Data shows that the highest gas fee due to this activity reached 0.1 ETH (about $370), which was much higher than the average gas price for BlobScriptions.

However, as the initial excitement around BlobScriptions faded, the Blob fee market quickly returned to lower levels.

Source: /dune.com

The Future of BlobScriptions

The primary role of Blobs is to significantly reduce gas fees for Layer 2 networks. As a result, competition for Blob block space is expected to become a major focus in the future. For the Ethereum Foundation, projects that widely adopt Blobs will dominate the ecosystem and become leading Layer 2 solutions. Currently, only BlobScriptions have made notable progress in this area, and they may continue to occupy Blob space for a considerable time. This is largely because the creation of inscriptions is typically driven by a large number of retail users, which has also drawn ongoing attention from Vitalik Buterin.

Blobs’ very low gas fees make them ideal for large-scale airdrops by project teams, offering significant benefits for utilizing Blob space. In summary, the large-scale adoption of Blobs is the Ethereum Foundation’s top priority right now, and BlobScriptions are the only project capable of achieving this goal.

However, if BlobScriptions continue to dominate this low-cost channel, the entire Ethereum ecosystem could feel the impact, potentially affecting base layer transactions. This might undermine the goal of the Dencun upgrade, which aims to significantly reduce transaction costs for Layer 2 networks.

Conclusion

The rapid rise of BlobScriptions has sparked discussions about whether Ethereum can continue to offer low-cost cryptocurrency transactions. If BlobScriptions remain popular, they may challenge Dencun’s promise to reduce Layer 2 transaction costs, bringing uncertainty to the blockchain’s future. Ethereum needs to be highly flexible to navigate this complex reassessment period. While the long-term impact is still uncertain, the success of BlobScriptions highlights the innovative potential of the Ethereum ecosystem and offers valuable insights for future technological applications.