Protocol Update 003 — Improve UX

The Ethereum Foundation has launched “Improve UX,” a strategic initiative aimed at creating a seamless and secure experience for users across Ethereum’s Layer 1 and Layer 2 networks. Over the next 6–12 months, the focus is on making interoperability between chains effortless, reducing transaction times and costs, and enabling ultra-fast, permissionless messaging. This effort is structured into three streams: building foundational cross-chain standards, accelerating transaction speed, and finalizing advanced cryptographic messaging systems.

Key Ideas

Cross-chain interactions made native - Projects like the Open Intents Framework (OIF) and Ethereum Interoperability Layer (EIL) allow users to specify desired outcomes (e.g., swapping tokens across chains) without managing the technical steps, making multi-chain transactions feel like single-chain actions.
Faster Ethereum performance - Initiatives include the Fast L1 Confirmation Rule for near-instant confirmations, halving L1 slot times from 12 to 6 seconds, and significantly shortening L2 withdrawal windows.

Why It Matters?

The technology allows to integrate OIF and EIL into dApps to abstract away cross-chain complexity, enabling single-interface, multi-chain actions. Developers can implement the Fast L1 Confirmation Rule to deliver near-instant transaction feedback, improving UX for DeFi, gaming, and other latency-sensitive applications. They can monetize dApps by charging small aggregation fees while saving users time and costs.