The Ethereum-based rollup Taiko has officially launched on the mainnet after a development period starting in 2022 and going through seven testnets.

The inaugural block on Taiko’s mainnet was proposed by Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, with metadata containing the names of all Taiko core contributors.

Taiko operates as a based rollup, relying on Ethereum block validators to sequence transactions, leveraging the liveness and security assurances from the underlying layer.

Initially, Taiko’s rollup protocol contracts on Ethereum are managed through a multisig setup. The protocol starts with SGX proofs and plans to shift to requiring 50% of blocks to use ZK proofs as part of its long-term scaling and security strategy.

Taiko Co-founder and CEO Daniel Wang expressed excitement about the mainnet launch, highlighting it as a culmination of significant development effort aimed at providing top-notch security for scaling Ethereum.

Additionally, Taiko features a type-1 zero-knowledge virtual machine that mirrors Ethereum's architecture and incorporates a multi-proof proving system for enhanced security through diverse proof submissions and contests.

The Taiko token is set to debut a few weeks post-mainnet launch, alongside plans for the Trailblazers points incentive program to engage the community through rewards for network interaction.

Before the mainnet launch, Taiko announced an airdrop for its community, distributing 5% of its 1 billion token supply in a "genesis airdrop."

Looking ahead, Taiko intends to introduce a DAO later in the year, progressively transferring protocol control to the community through phased governance transitions.

Initially, Taiko will manage block proposing and proving for the first two weeks post-launch to ensure network stability, later transitioning to decentralized and permissionless processes.

Wang emphasized Taiko's commitment to security and gradual decentralization, highlighting the importance of stability before opening the network fully to public engagement.

Since its inception in 2022, Taiko has secured $37 million in funding across two fundraising rounds.