Sony Launches Blockchain Platform Soneium, with Over 60 Ecological Projects

Sony recently established a Blockchain department and launched the Ethereum Layer-2 network Soneium, aimed at providing an open internet platform for creators. Soneium is a project co-founded by Sony and Startale Labs, which is known for building the well-known public chain Astar Network in Japan.

Soneium is built on the OP Stack and integrated with the Optimism Superchain. Its purpose is to reach mainstream users, and the official social media has repeatedly mentioned the slogan "Go Mainstream."

Astar Network is transforming its Astar zkEVM into Soneium L2 to leverage Sony's expertise in entertainment, gaming, and finance to integrate Web3 technology into real-world applications. $ASTR will support the Soneium ecosystem, but Gas fees will still be priced in $ETH.

The Soneium Minato testnet was launched on August 28. Soneium has also launched the Spark incubation program, providing up to $100,000 in investment and other support for ecological projects.

In just half a month, more than 60 projects have announced the development or integration of Soneium. These projects cover various fields including SocialFi, GameFi, RWA, DeFi, NFT, infrastructure, protocols, and cross-chain bridges.

Notable projects include:

• SocialFi: Yay!、Metadomo、Layer3
• GameFi: Heal3, Derby Race, Metapro
• RWA: All Access, OpenEden, DeStore Network
• DeFi: Ionic, L2X Pro, Very Long Swap, Algem, waveX, etc.
• NFT: Bluez, Sonova, NFTs2Me
• Infrastructure: Alchemy, Graph Protocol, Sentio, Thirdweb, etc.
• Cross-Chain Bridge: Chainlink, Layerswap, Superbridge, Owlto Finance, etc.

Sony's global influence may attract Web2 users to Soneium. However, given the intense competition in the current Layer-2 space, whether Soneium can gain sufficient user attention remains to be seen.