Initia: What should a good modular EVM look like?
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Initia: What should a good modular EVM look like?
Why did modular blockchain Initia choose to build its own InitiaEVM, and what makes it special?
Navigating Web3 tides with focused insightsCompiled by: Alex Liu, Foresight News
Initia is a modular Layer 1 blockchain capable of deploying and vertically integrating numerous "interwoven" rollups, officially referred to as "Minitias" (a concept similar to Dymension and its RollApps).
Built on the Cosmos SDK, Initia enters an ecosystem that already includes EVM solutions like Evmos. Why then did Initia choose to build its own InitiaEVM, and what makes it special?
VM-Level Interoperability
Initia aims to make Minitias the simplest way to build high-speed, flexible, and interoperable application-specific chains. Virtual machines are just tools within the Minitia toolkit—teams should be able to choose based on their specific use cases or language preferences. This flexibility is precisely the benefit of modular design. Minitias can freely select InitiaEVM, InitiaMVM (MoveVM), or WasmVM as their VM.
In a rollup-centric future, thousands of rollups will need to interact seamlessly, with inherent interoperability built-in from the start—not bolted on afterward—even across different virtual machines. This philosophy has driven Initia to optimize InitiaEVM specifically for cross-VM compatibility: InitiaEVM, InitiaMVM, and WasmVM all support interoperability across virtual machines.
Dual EVM and Cosmos Compatibility
InitiaEVM is designed as a Cosmos SDK module, supporting Solidity smart contracts and EVM operations while adding Cosmos and IBC interoperability.
With full EVM compatibility, Solidity contracts can be deployed or migrated to InitiaEVM without any modifications.
More importantly, InitiaEVM binds the EVM and Cosmos layers together through a custom Bank Interface (BI), replacing the standard Cosmos x/bank module responsible for native coin accounts with ERC20.
Cosmos Bank == ERC20.
Initia’s MoveVM uses a similar model.
As a result, even though EVM Minitias are Cosmos chains, they have only one token standard: ERC20.
Users don’t need to think about Cosmos tokens, interfaces, or token conversions at all. Solidity projects can migrate effortlessly and optionally connect to the broader Cosmos ecosystem.
IBC-First Design
IBC is Cosmos’ flagship cross-chain protocol, enabling seamless asset transfers between different Cosmos chains. In InitiaEVM:
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Outbound: ERC20 tokens created in Solidity smart contracts can immediately be transferred via IBC to other chains—no complex procedures required.
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Inbound: Native Cosmos assets can be transferred into EVM Minitias via IBC and minted as ERC20 tokens.
This makes asset transfers between Minitias simple and straightforward.
Simplified Precompiles
InitiaEVM allows direct execution of any Cosmos message from Solidity contracts or querying of Cosmos chain states. Features such as interchain accounts, ICQ, and Slinky queries are all available. The developer experience remains identical to that of traditional EVM chains, embracing the vast Solidity developer community and reducing development overhead.
Cross-EVM Interactions
InitiaEVM has integrated IBC hooks to support multi-chain, cross-VM, and contract-level interactions—an essential capability in the emerging multi-chain world order.
Summary
In Initia’s view, a good modular EVM must first and foremost “just be an EVM.” Developers should be able to run existing Solidity programs on new application chains without learning new concepts or modifying source code—enabling zero-cost migration. Second, it must offer interoperability across rollups and different virtual machines, with unified token standards, seamless asset transfers, and deep integration with underlying chains to deliver excellent user experiences in the future multi-chain landscape.
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