Sonic Labs Prepares for Public Launch of Sonic Blockchain Following Genesis Milestone

Sonic Labs has announced the impending public launch of its layer-1 blockchain, Sonic, following the successful completion of its Genesis milestone, marking the creation of the blockchain’s first block.

“Genesis achieved. Block zero. Infrastructure deploying. Public soon,” the firm said in a December 2 announcement on X.

Sonic is an Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM)-compatible blockchain designed for speed, aiming to provide developers with low-latency transactions and reduced fees.

Sonic’s Blockchain is a Successor to Fantom Opera Network

Described as a successor to the Fantom Opera network, Sonic represents a rebranding effort to enhance performance and user incentives.

The project is supported by the Fantom Foundation, which has been pivotal in developing Fantom’s decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem since 2019.

Ahead of its public launch, Sonic introduced “Blaze,” an upgraded testnet, on December 1.

Additionally, the platform completed its “Snapshot” for an airdrop allocation of its native “S” tokens on December 2.

Around 200 million S tokens, which can be swapped 1:1 with Fantom (FTM) tokens, were distributed through interactive arcade games like Coinflip and Plinko.

These games have since concluded as the platform transitions toward its mainnet debut.

Sonic’s blockchain operates on a proof-of-stake mechanism, allowing S token holders to participate in staking.

Genesis achieved.

Block zero.

Infrastructure deploying.

Public soon.

— Sonic Labs (prev. Fantom) 💥 (@0xSonicLabs) December 2, 2024

During testnet trials, the blockchain achieved transaction finality in just 720 milliseconds, placing it among the fastest EVM-compatible chains, alongside Solana and Base.

The Sonic network is designed to incentivize developers, allocating 90% of generated transaction fees back to them.

Andre Cronje, Sonic Labs’ Chief Technology Officer and a former Fantom advisor, emphasized the platform’s goal to become the preferred blockchain for developers.

To support the transition from Fantom to Sonic, the Fantom Foundation allocated $120 million in FTM tokens to assist developers in migrating their projects.

Earlier this year, the Sonic Foundation was launched to oversee governance, manage the treasury, foster partnerships, and build a comprehensive DeFi ecosystem.

Fantom Foundation Pledges $120M to Accelerate Project Migrations to Sonic

In June, the Fantom Foundation revealed its plan to allocate up to 200 million of its native Fantom tokens, amounting to approximately $120 million, from its treasury to facilitate the transition of projects to the Sonic network.

The pledged funds will be utilized to identify and secure partnerships with top-tier developers and companies capable of contributing to the growth and development of the Sonic network.

This includes developers working on applications directly on the Fantom platform, developers focused on decentralized applications (DApps), as well as partners providing essential tools and services.

Notably, the funds will be derived from smart financial strategies implemented by Fantom network creator Andre Cronje, without any increase in the total token supply.

Initially, the allocated funds will be directed towards strategic grants for existing applications within the Fantom ecosystem, with priority given to those that have demonstrated a strong interest in leveraging the Sonic technology.