Community Talk #29 was held on Tuesday, November 21st @8am pst.
The Graph’s Community Talk offers an engaging platform where participants can delve into a variety of topics, providing a comprehensive update on the latest happenings within The Graph community, and thrives on the active participation and engagement of community members. These discussions are hosted in The Graph Stage channel of the Discord Server.
Stay informed about this and other important community events by checking out our ecosystem calendar! For convenience, set a reminder for the Community Talk by visiting the events channel at the top of the Discord server.
Each call is documented, with detailed notes and timestamps for each topic available below
Community Updates (00:00)
Devconnect Instanbul
Devconnect Istanbul was a week-long event in Istanbul, Turkey. The Graph played a prominent role at DevConnect by hosting Datapalooza, which concentrated on research and development and tooling in The Graph ecosystem and across web3. This event emphasized The Graph’s use cases for decentralized applications (dApps), analytics, tooling, LLMs and more. To make the content accessible to those who couldn’t attend, all sessions from Data Palooza were recorded.
During the event Andrea hosted a Graph Advocate meetup. This gathering was a successful networking opportunity, bringing together Graph Advocates in Istanbul for further engagement and discussion on future contributions to the ecosystem. During the call, a special mention was given to the volunteers who contributed to the success of Datapalooza!
Watch Sam Green’s presentation on bringing high-performance SQL queries to The Graph here!
GRTiQ Newly Released Episodes
Episode 139 - Antoine Chaveron
Antoine “Chav” Chaveron, CEO and co-founder of UNCX Network, discusses his entrepreneurial background and his work in DeFi services, focusing on UNCX Network’s innovative and automated token solutions.
Episode 140 - Colson
Colson, a Graph Advocate and member of Graph AdvocatesDAO, shares his journey from soccer and competitive gaming to a career in teaching and his involvement in The Graph community, including hosting community calls and offering assistance to newcomers.
Episode 141 - Esther Woo
Esther Woo, a Graph Advocate and member of Graph AdvocatesDAO, talks about her transition from a conventional job to the world of web3, her journey with The Graph, and the development of CryptoPols, an app tracking crypto legislation.
Episode 142 - Tegan Kline
Tegan Kline, CEO and Co-Founder at Edge & Node, discusses her transition from Wall Street to web3, her role at Edge & Node, and various initiatives including the Sunrise of Decentralized Data and the New Era R&D roadmap.
Episode 143 - Michaela (Mickey) Negus
Michaela (Mickey) Negus, Engineering Manager at Edge & Node, reflects on her unconventional journey into web3, including diverse experiences such as a foreign exchange trip to Russia and work at Sandia Labs, leading to her role at Edge & Node and impact on The Graph protocol.
Visit the GRTiQ website for the latest episodes!
The New Era of The Graph (01:31)
The Graph’s third anniversary is coming up in December, and there’s no better time to look towards the future. Paolo shared more information about the roadmap during this segment, which is structured around five core objectives. While the roadmap details what will be a long journey, many of the objectives are already in progress.
World of Data Services
Expands beyond subgraphs to offer a variety of data services. This includes new query languages for analytics, complete integration of Firehose and Substreams for faster data flow, verifiable Firehose for historical Ethereum data, non-deterministic data sources, fine-tuned LLMs for query generation, and a dynamic file sharing marketplace for Indexers.
Developer Empowerment
Aims to enhance the Developer Experience (DevEx) with UX improvements, including streamlined billing, clear pricing models, reduced gas fees via migration to Arbitrum, seamless subgraph upgrades, support for all chains on the hosted service, improved GraphQL API, and advanced testing and build-time validation features. Enhanced tooling for Substreams with a dedicated GUI and Codegen capabilities is also a focus.
Protocol Evolution & Resiliency
Key initiatives include implementing Scalar TAP, a new payment system to reduce trust assumptions between gateways and Indexers, introducing Graph Horizon to simplify the protocol and improve its permissionless and cost-effective nature and more. These efforts aim to strengthen the foundation for current applications and ensure a durable, adaptable, affordable, and reliable web3 data infrastructure for the future.
Optimized Indexer Performance
Focuses on improving network performance with enhanced Indexer tooling and operational capabilities. This includes a scaled Indexer stack backed by Kubernetes, new cost modeling frameworks, automated divergence checks and streamlined detection using tools like Graphix and reduced on-chain gas fees through Arbitrum.
P.S. Join Launchpad office hours every Wednesday for more information on becoming an Indexer.
Interconnected Graph of Data
Concentrates on creating tools for composable data and an organized knowledge graph. It involves implementing improved mechanisms for data curation and governance, enabling network support for Natural Language Processing through LLMs, providing unified access to all data services, and enacting tooling to create knowledge graphs.
The roadmap is comprehensive, with many initiatives already in progress. It signals the beginning of a new era for The Graph, aiming to serve a broader range of data services and use cases beyond its current on-chain data focus. For more details, the roadmap and a full blog post are available on The Graph’s website, with additional resources and support accessible through Discord and the forum.
Semiotic Labs | agentc.xyz
Paolo also briefly covered Semiotic Labs new tool that takes natural language prompts and allows users to query the Uniswap subgraph. This functionality makes it easier for users to interact with The Graph’s data, as it simplifies querying by removing the need-to-know specific query languages like Graph QL or SQL. Paolo shared how he was able to check the last swap performed with his wallet through a natural language prompt. The tool represents a significant step in The Graph’s goal to extend beyond current data services and languages, making it more accessible to a wider audience. For those interested, there is a waiting list available at agentc.xyz.
Graphrica Events Schedule & SG Hack (13:18)
In this segment, Mack highlighted various events and initiatives led by Graphica to engage and educate members about The Graph and Web3. These events are designed to provide a comprehensive understanding of The Graph, especially for newcomers and those seeking to deepen their knowledge in subgraph and Substreams development.
Ongoing Events
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Lean Coffee Sessions
Bi-monthly sessions where attendees choose and vote on discussion topics. These guided discussions allow for a broad range of topics to be explored. These sessions are held on Mondays at 3pm UTC. -
Introduction to The Graph
Sessions for newcomers or for those wanting a refresher, covering the basics of The Graph, its history, core teams, the roles within its ecosystem (developer, Indexer, Curator, Delegator), and an overview of subgraphs and Substreams. These sessions are held bi-monthly. -
Coding Sessions
Open sessions for hands-on learning in building subgraphs and Substreams. These sessions are categorized into beginner and advanced levels, tailored to specific requests or topics.
Join these sessions here!
SG Hack
An upcoming hackathon, SG Hack, is planned for Q1 of 2024, following the success of the previous event. The hackathon focuses on developing subgraphs, with $1,500 worth of bounties previously offered. The next SG Hack is expected to run over two weeks, with efforts to source more bounties ongoing!
Details about the next SG Hack will be shared on Graphica’s website around mid-December. Interested participants and community members are encouraged to follow updates on the website or through Graphica’s social media channels.
Graphica is actively participating in various community events, including hosting a two-hour workshop at Crypto Fest in Cape Town, focusing on The Graph and its capabilities.
These initiatives underscore Graphica’s commitment to fostering a knowledgeable and vibrant community around The Graph and Web3 technologies in Africa and globally.
Upgrade Indexer (22:15)
In this segment, Derek shared the pain points current subgraph developers are seeing when choosing where to deploy their subgraph, and how the new upgrade indexer will solve these - and migration - issues.
The Graph Network, as the decentralized counterpart of the hosted service, presents a disparity in the number of supported chains. This discrepancy often leads developers to favor the hosted service for simplicity of workflow, negating the advantages of deploying on The Graph’s decentralized network such as superior quality of service, uptime, competitive data indexing, and support. This situation results in a fragmented workflow for developers, especially when their subgraphs extend across networks that are supported by the hosted service but not by The Graph Network.
The upgrade Indexer facilitates the transition of subgraphs from the hosted service to The Graph Network by ensuring immediate query support after publication, supporting multiple chains, and pre-syncing hosted service subgraphs. This involves user-friendly tools for migrating subgraphs to the studio and publishing them on the decentralized network. The process aims to simplify the developer experience, ensuring easy publication and efficient data checking.
A key aspect of the upgrade Indexer is enabling support for more networks on the decentralized network, which will initially allow subgraphs to serve queries and earn query fees, even if they don’t earn Indexer rewards immediately. Once a chain gains sufficient support and high query volume, community governance can enable indexing rewards for that chain. The upgrade indexer will support subgraphs as soon as they’re published. The immediate support will significantly improve the quality of life for developers, allowing faster utilization of The Graph and promoting active consumption.
Overall, the upgrade indexer is a critical step in expanding The Graph’s decentralized network, offering more networks, faster subgraph support, and a streamlined process for developers transitioning from the hosted service.
Web Summit Lisbon 2023 (30:21)
The Web Summit recap highlighted The Graph’s participation in a conference attended by over 70,000 people from 153 countries. Members from The Graph’s community were present manning The Graph’s booth! The event served as a crucial platform for educating attendees about Web3 and blockchain, many of whom were unfamiliar with basic concepts.
A significant portion of the audience, while aware of Bitcoin, lacked a deeper understanding of blockchain technology:
- 90% never heard of web3
- 50% heard of blockchain but were unsure of what it was
There were many “aha” moments as staff at The Graph’s booth clarified the relationship between Bitcoin and blockchain and explained the potential of running applications on blockchain.
The summit also attracted individuals from various sectors, including insurance and recycling, interested in blockchain for data storage and management. This diverse interest highlighted the evolving applications of blockchain technology.
The event was not only an outreach opportunity but also a learning experience for The Graph team. It emphasized the importance of simplifying complex technical concepts for a broader audience, contributing to a better understanding of the digital revolution driven by blockchain and Web3 technologies.
Tenderize V2 Demo (36:55)
Tenderize enables liquid staking for GRT. Initially launched as Tenderize V1 about 18 months ago, it has since evolved, incorporating community feedback from Indexers and other supported networks. This feedback has been instrumental in the development of Tenderize V2, which was recently introduced with a public testnet.
Tenderize V2 introduces a new feature: validator-specific liquid stake tokens. This allows GRT holders to easily stake their tokens with preferred Indexers via a simple process. Tenderize simplifies the unstaking process, offering immediate unstaking options or a native unstaking option to return GRT without slippage. The unstaking process involves a waiting period (approximately three weeks), after which tokens can be withdrawn once the unbonding period is over, as indicated by a withdraw button.
Tenderize V2 will launch in approximately six weeks. The team is keen on expanding its network of Indexers and prioritizing those who actively collaborate for the launch. Indexers interested in partnering are encouraged to reach out for potential collaboration to further decentralize and grow The Graph ecosystem.
Questions and Answers
Is delegation with Tenderize on Arbitrum?
Yes, Tenderize will be live on Arbitrum only.
Will polygon liquid staking be supported?
Yes, polygon liquid staking will also be supported at launch.
Can you borrow against your GRT with Tenderize?
Yes, there will be a feature to borrow against staked GRT, enabling efficient use of assets without unstaking.
Has Tenderize V2 been audited?
Yes, audits have been conducted and the code has been reviewed by The Graph Foundation and other developers, with no critical issues found.
Stay Tuned!
Join us next month for Community Talk #30!
Keep up to date by joining discussions in the forum, following The Graph on X(Formerly Twitter) or joining the Discord server.