Andre Cronje, co-founder of Sonic Labs, criticizes Layer 2 (L2) app chains, arguing that they are impractical for builders.
In a post by X on October 13th, Cronje raised Concerns about high infrastructure costs, fragmented liquidity, and lack of support for developers. He suggested that these challenges are hindering widespread adoption of app chains.
AppChain is a customized blockchain designed to meet the specific needs of a decentralized application (DApp) or a specific set of features.
sauce: Andre Cronje
Cost and Support: Cronje vs. Hilmar
Cronje's main criticism was the high cost of deploying and maintaining app chains. He said infrastructure costs such as regulatory compliance and Oracle can add up quickly.
He revealed that the team's infrastructure spending has already reached $14 million this year. He noted that many of these recurring expenses make it difficult for developers to focus on their core applications and users.
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Hilmar Orth, founder of Gelato Network, disagreed with Cronje's assessment. Orth argued that the necessary infrastructure is now easily accessible through Rollup as a Service Provider (RaaS).
Orth said developers no longer need to build infrastructure from scratch, pointing to existing support from framework teams and RaaS providers. He refuted Cronje's concerns about separation, saying AppChain support is readily available.
sauce: Hilmar
Liquidity and Security: Cronje vs. Boisron
Cronje also raised concerns around liquidity fragmentation in app chains, arguing that liquidity is being forced onto bridges that are “centralized and vulnerable to attack.”
Marc Boiron, CEO of Polygon Labs, introduced AggLayer as a solution that can solve many of the liquidity problems by creating an interoperable network of app chains.
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Boiron's stance reflects his optimism for app chain liquidity management once it becomes fungible across multiple chains to effectively reduce fragmentation risk.
Mr. Orth echoed this optimism, claiming that Rollup incorporates bridges and market makers, and that “faster zk proof” will optimize the movement of funds.
sauce: Marc Boiron
Discussion of community and network effects
Cronje also said that L2 as an app chain “doesn't have a community of users or builders,” which reduces the network effects needed for app chains to thrive.
Boiron disagrees, saying the community and network effect is alive and well, adding that “so many friends” contribute to AggLayer as community members and “help grow the pie.”
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Mr. Hilmer also refuted both Mr. Cronje's and Mr. Boisron's community statements. He said builders are often “competing with each other for users and are not friends.” That is the reality. ”
The ongoing discussion between Cronje, Orth, and Boiron continues to garner attention regarding X, highlighting the division of opinion regarding L2 as an app chain.
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