What is SUAVE?
SUAVE, the Single Unifying Auction for Value Expression, is a decentralized network intended for MEV applications such as order flow auctions and block builders, which make use of credible, confidential computation.
SUAVE is designed as an open marketplace for these MEV applications, which we call "SUAPPs". SUAPPs are composed of smart contracts deployed on SUAVE, which can do one (or more) of the following:
🕵️♀️ Compute on confidential data, e.g. auctions, block building
💸 Compute that requires too much gas to do on-chain
🤹 Coordinate within block times, e.g. block building, trade routing and filling
🗃️ Access relevant off-chain data, e.g. trading strategies conditional on centralized exchange prices or transactions that are conditional on other transactions
🤝 Help create, attest to, or process commitments of various kinds, e.g. shared sequencers for rollups, new kinds of DEXes and bridges
What SUAVE is not
SUAVE does not replace other blockchains: it is intended to aggregate and coordinate all the things that ultimately change the state of other chains.
SUAVE is not a Layer 2 in the sense that it does not post state roots to Ethereum or otherwise depend upon Ethereum for its security.
The bridge between SUAVE and Ethereum is still WIP, and is a topic of active research and debate. Its current implementation is purposefully naive to allow for quick iteration at this early stage.
What is different about SUAVE
Architecture
SUAVE is a fork of Geth, with additional precompiles for MEV applications (SUAPPs) and a modified runtime to enable confidential computation (the MEVM).
We call the primary protocol actor a Kettle. A Kettle contains a modified version of a Geth node (the "MEVM") and a confidential data store.
A Kettle can compute over confidential data sent to it, add that data to its local store, and only broadcast specific information, or "hints", to the wider public.
SUAVE has public and private state. Public state is accessible on the SUAVE Chain, which currently runs Clique POA Consensus (for fast iteration, to be changed in future releases). To access private state, we use "Confidential Compute Requests".
Contracts and Transactions
A SUAPP is a smart contract deployed on SUAVE, just as a Dapp is a smart contract deployed on Ethereum. Deploying contracts is largely the same as any EVM chain.
Transactions can differ, because they can contain data encrypted for specific actors (i.e. Kettles and/or other contracts). These are "Confidential Compute Requests".
Confidential Compute Requests are handled via a modified RPC in each Kettle, and executed by the "Modified Ethereum Virtual Machine", or "MEVM".
Why SUAVE matters
To understand the context which has inspired SUAVE, we recommend these resources: