Learning about Rootstock and how they unlock smart contracts for Bitcoin
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About This Episode
In this episode of DevNTell, the podcast for web3 builders, Narb interviews Rootstock co-founder Adrian Eidelman to discuss the innovation of the Rootstock sidechain. Rootstock is an Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM)-compatible sidechain that bridges smart contract functionality with the Bitcoin network. The conversation highlights Adrian’s journey from the traditional software world to becoming a blockchain pioneer, the core pillars of the Rootstock platform, and the exciting possibilities for developers to build decentralized applications (dApps) on the most secure blockchain infrastructure. Adrian explains how Rootstock leverages merged mining to secure its network while enabling faster, more expressive transactions using Bitcoin (RBTC) as its native currency.
Key Takeaways
Rootstock operates as an EVM-compatible sidechain to the Bitcoin network, bringing Ethereum-like smart contract expressive power to Bitcoin’s security and decentralization.
The sidechain uses a 1:1 pegged version of Bitcoin, known as RBTC, as its native currency, ensuring that all ecosystem activities are aligned with Bitcoin’s value and network effects.
Rootstock implements 'merged mining,' allowing Bitcoin miners to secure the Rootstock network simultaneously with Bitcoin using the same hash power, earning additional rewards in the process.
A major motivation for Rootstock was the need for basic decentralized financial services in regions like Argentina, where traditional banking infrastructure is often inaccessible or inefficient.
Since Rootstock is EVM-compatible, developers can use existing tools such as Solidity, Hardhat, Foundry, and the Graph to build on the platform without a steep learning curve.
Featured Guest
Adrian Eidelman
Co-Founder @ Rootstock
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