Author: ARNDXT Compiler: Cointime.com 237
The funds in my wallet often give me sleepless nights.
Through account abstraction, accounts are protected from phishing attacks, no seed phrase is required, and transactions require no gas fees.
You can use and manage your wallet as easily as your email.
Deep Dive + Top 10 Projects Mentioned by @VitalikButerin In this super research topic, I will share everything you need to know about Account Abstraction (AA) and some of the protocols mentioned by Vitalik.
1. Background of Web3 wallet
2. The difference between EOA (Externally Owned Account) and Contract Account
3. Account Abstraction (AA)
4. Top 10 AA Projects
5. All AA agreements
6. Application Cases
1. Background of Web3 Accounts
Today, there are two types of accounts on Ethereum:
1. Externally owned accounts (EOAs) are accounts controlled by users that are used to hold assets and send transactions. EOAs are controlled by external private keys.
2. Contract accounts are controlled by smart contract codes deployed on Ethereum. These codes define their behavior, enabling them to run autonomously as programs. Contract accounts can hold assets, execute code in response to transactions, and interact with other contracts.
The one I am familiar with and often use is EOA (External Owner Account), and there are some Web3 wallets I am familiar with, such as MM, Rabby, Coinbase Wallet, and Trust Wallet.
Both EOA and contract accounts can hold assets, but contract accounts allow for the writing of complex logic.
There are some limitations in using EOA wallets, which poses a barrier to the adoption of mainstream cryptocurrencies and the decentralized applications built on them.
1. Private key management is a significant burden - if the private key is lost, the user will never be able to access the assets.
2. If the private key is obtained by an attacker, the EOA is vulnerable to theft. There is no recovery option.
3. EOAs have no built-in logic. They can only send basic transactions and cannot interact with smart contracts.
4. Poor user experience for non-technical users who are not familiar with cryptocurrency addresses.
5. Compared with traditional accounts, managing multiple EOAs is very troublesome.
Users want the convenience they are accustomed to from Web2 services (e.g., email accounts, single sign-on).
2. EOA vs Contract Account
Compared with EOA, contract accounts provide greater flexibility and powerful functions.
1. Permission control
Contract accounts allow for the definition of fine-grained permission levels, such as multi-signature.
EOA gives full control to the private key holder.
2. Batch transactions
Contract accounts can efficiently process multiple transactions in batches.
EOA requires signing each transaction separately.
3. Account recovery
Contract accounts can implement recovery logic on the chain.
EOA relies only on the private key, so once lost it cannot be recovered.
4. Trading restrictions
Contract accounts can implement custom logic, such as suspending transactions during account recovery.
EOA cannot control transactions through program.
ERC-4337 is a new Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP) that introduces the concept of "account abstraction" to Ethereum. It allows the creation of "smart accounts" that are controlled by smart contracts instead of private keys.
AA flips the Ethereum model from "users directly holding assets" to "smart contracts holding assets on behalf of users." This unlocks new account functions that cannot be achieved using ordinary EOA.
AA brief description: Each account is a smart contract.
Some key features of AA:
1. Allows accounts to be recovered by storing recovery information on-chain when private keys are lost. This eliminates the risk of permanently losing funds if private keys are lost.
2. Through smart contracts, accounts can be programmed to add additional logic and functionality. For example, an account can set spending limits, only allow transfers to whitelisted addresses, or trigger other actions when receiving funds.
3. An account can be owned or managed by multiple keys (such as multi-signature), contracts or other accounts. This makes the account control scheme more flexible.
4. The account separates the key from the contract logic. This allows the key to be changed without changing the related contract code. AA unifies EOA and contract accounts into one paradigm, namely, accounts based on smart contracts.
Here are some key benefits for users:
1. The logic of signing transactions is abstracted into the smart contract code.
2. Programmable accounts provide greater flexibility and can have functions such as multi-signature, two-factor authentication (2FA), withdrawal restrictions, key expiration, etc.
3. Improved user experience for non-technical users:
(1) No need to directly manage keys, reducing the possibility of errors.
(2) Account recovery can be performed when the key is lost.
(3) Ability to hide the complexity of the blockchain and make it feel like interacting with a normal application account.
4. Top 10 AA
These are some of the protocols Vitalik mentioned at ETHcc (Ethereum Developer Conference) and they are implementing some of the benefits and features mentioned before.
While these protocols may have been popularized to some extent by Vitalik, they bring some amazing technology to the space.
Let’s see what added value they bring to the field.
@myBraavos launched their hardware signing feature, which allows users to cancel transaction requests if the seed stage is stolen.
@TrustWallet：
I didn’t find any bullish news about Trust Wallet. I saw a lot of giveaways on their Twitter page.
@iSafePal：
Same with Safe Pal, nothing really compelling to get me excited about, their page is full of Q&As and event sharing. Not much information on product development, releases, or any new integrations.
Not sure why Vitalik mentioned these two projects, maybe just using this opportunity for marketing?
5. All AA (Autonomous Agent) protocols
This is probably one of the best infographics on protocol development I have found in the AA space.
Here is a complete comprehensive list:
Smart Contract Wallet:
@Instadapp @safe @myBraavos @rhinestonewtf @soulwallet_eth @nestwalletxyz @tribes_xyz @itsobvioustech @argentHQ @AmbireWallet @patchwallet @candidewallet @GetLinen
app:
@dYdX @LensProtocol @Sorare @briqNFT
SDK Providers:
@biconomy @wallet_banana @blocknative @UniPassID @opclave @thirdweb @zerodev_app @metafi_wallet @safe @0xpass_io
Payment Services:
@stackup_fi @biconomy @pimlicoHQ
Packager/Repeater:
@stackup_fi @biconomy @pimlicoHQ @OpenZeppelin @gelatonetwork @UniPassID @blocknative @candidewallet
6. Application Cases
We have seen AA simplify the cryptocurrency user experience by increasing the speed of operations, reducing costs, enhancing security and flexibility. I believe this will drive cryptocurrency into the next stage of mass adoption, and there will be a competition between these protocols to attract users the fastest.
Based on the examples we have seen above, here is a summary of all the use cases that AA can bring:
1. Accounts without seeds
2. New Web Authentication Standard; Single Point of Access
3. Multi-signature authorization
4. Two-factor authentication (2FA) as a security mechanism
5. Transaction batch processing
6. Session Key
7. Automatic recurring and scheduled payments
8. Transaction simulation; simulate before signing
9. Instant onboarding with fiat currency on-ramp
10. Withdrawal/spending limits; limiting spending
11. Account inheritance/social recovery
12. Fuel abstraction mechanism; reducing costs
13. Support quantum-safe algorithms
