Connect Cosmos to Any Chain: Introducing Hyperlane to Cosmos

This is a joint post with Hyperlane on our partnership. Check out the post on their blog here.

We’re hyped to announce that Hyperlane’s Permissionless Interoperability solution is coming to Cosmos-based blockchains, in collaboration with Strangelove Labs.

Over the past quarter we’ve been working with Strangelove engineers to build a Hyperlane Cosmos SDK module, with the goal of extending Cosmos beyond just IBC-connected chains.

Strangelove is a leading contributor to the growing Cosmos ecosystem (“the Interchain”). The company focuses on open source Inter-blockchain Communication software (IBC) and other key Cosmos infrastructure to drive and capture value in the Interchain. We’re proud to align with Strangelove in expanding their Cosmos vision, and Hyperlane’s Permissionless Interoperability vision together.

So what does this mean for Cosmos?

• Permissionless Interoperability between Cosmos chains and non-IBC-enabled chains, especially upcoming modular rollups (like Celestia ecosystem)

• Cosmos SDK chains can integrate the Hyperlane module out-of-the-box just like IBC

• Expand the potential user base and reach of the Cosmos ecosystem

“Hyperlane’s vision to be the first universal and permissionless interoperability layer built for the modular blockchain stack perfectly aligns with Strangelove’s mission to advance IBC in the Cosmos ecosystem and beyond.” - Jack Zampolin, CEO Strangelove.

We already have IBC, why Hyperlane?

IBC pioneered interchain interoperability, enabling Cosmos SDK chains to easily connect with each other by integrating the pre-built IBC module. IBC is a remarkable success, with the entire Cosmos ecosystem connected thanks to it.

However, Cosmos remains relatively isolated from external blockchain ecosystems like Ethereum, Arbitrum, Solana, etc. That’s a lot of users and liquidity Cosmos is missing out on. We need to connect Cosmos to these external users and onboard them, but there’s a few roadblocks:

IBC is currently limited to Cosmos

• IBC is doing a great job connecting Cosmos chains, but we need to connect Cosmos to outside chains. One tradeoff is that IBC interoperability is practically limited to Tendermint / Cosmos SDK chains. So we need an alternative interop solution for connecting external chains.

The interoperability alternatives are permissioned

• Other permissioned interoperability alternatives are functional now, but don’t offer the same permissionless/out-of-the-box deployability as IBC. You need to lobby them and their validators to support your chain. Not ideal for smaller Cosmos chains without influence.

Permissioned interop is not scalable in a modular future

• As we trend towards a modular blockchain future, permissioned interoperability providers won’t be able to scale and deploy on every new modular chain. You need to be able to self-deploy interoperability out-of-the-box at launch, or risk stunting the growth of your new chain. The politics and time drain of lobbying permissioned interop teams is not viable for smaller teams. The modular stack needs permissionless interoperability to scale.

Hyperlane is the ideal compliment to IBC

Hyperlane is built with much of the Cosmos vision in mind. We believe modular blockchains are the future, and permissionless deployments are the only way to scale interoperability with them. And with this integration, Hyperlane expands the IBC vision beyond just Cosmos. Connect Cosmos anywhere.

“By partnering with Hyperlane, together we’ll expand the emerging interchain economy by offering more cross-chain solutions, with the ultimate goal of enabling full compatibility with IBC.”

With Hyperlane:

• Open Cosmos up to more users with interoperability between Cosmos/IBC chains + non-IBC chains

• Seamless connections to new modular rollup ecosystems and rollups-as-a-service providers

• Permissionless, out-of-the-box integrations. No lobbying or politics needed.

• Expand Cosmos assets + apps to external chains (and vice versa)

• Potentially a future IBC integration with Hyperlane as an interchain security module (ISM)?
  

Hyperlane x IBC in practice

One of the first expected integrations is Noble, the Cosmos chain for native asset-issuance (like bringing native-USDC to Cosmos). With its existing IBC integration, Noble is already able to act as an asset-issuance hub for Cosmos. But it remains limited to Cosmos, and can’t permissionlessly connect new chains outside of Cosmos.

With the upcoming Hyperlane Cosmos module integration, Noble will be able to connect to external chains out-of-the-box. And if not satisfied with the current Hyperlane supported chains, Noble developers can permissionlessly self-deploy Hyperlane to new chains and extend Noble’s reach. An asset issuance hub without limitation.

We envision Hyperlane unlocking Cosmos chains so they don’t need to just be “Cosmos” chains anymore.

The Hyperlane Cosmos module is set to go live on mainnet by end Q3.

Discover how Hyperlane can help your project here.

More about Strangelove

Strangelove is a stalwart contributor to the growing Cosmos ecosystem (“the Interchain”). The company focuses on open source Inter-blockchain Communication software (IBC) and adjacent commercial infrastructure products to drive and capture value in the emerging Interchain economy. Learn more at strange.love.

More about Hyperlane

Hyperlane is the first Permissionless Interoperability layer, enabling anyone to bring the Hyperlane interoperability stack to any blockchain, out-of-the-box. With Hyperlane, developers can build Interchain Applications, apps that abstract away the complexity of interchain interactions and serve users on any connected chain. Additionally, Hyperlane’s modular security stack gives developers the power to customize their interchain security.

Hyperlane development is open-source and led by core developers at Abacus Works.

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