The development rate in the Web 3.0 sector increased significantly in Q3 2022. The activity on the code this year makes it the most productive year ever, with blockchain developers deploying 118,000 smart contracts.
This year, the Web 3.0 development intensity keeps growing strongly, despite the ongoing market downturn. For example, according to a report from analysts at Alchemy, blockchain developers deployed about 49,000 smart contracts in Q3 2022, raising the annual figure to 118,000.
Smart contract deployments in Q3 2022 were up 40% from the first half of the year. So, developers have been showing record highs since July (14,615 smart contracts), reaching a peak in September (17,736 smart contracts). These figures were higher than those of the previous year by an average of 143%. It’s worth noting that since 2016, about 323,000 smart contracts have been deployed, 36% of which were created this year.
The SDK (software development kit) download figures for Ethereum, a popular blockchain, were another sign of development activity. For instance, two critically important Web 3.0 libraries Ethers.js and Web3.js. were downloaded about 1.5 million times per week in 2022, a 178% increase over last year.
Alchemy analysts also noted that Ethereum’s transition to PoS has greatly impacted development activity in the sector. For example, blockchain developer activity dropped in the run-up to the event, but immediately after The Merge, smart contract deployment increased by 14%.
Yet, development activity isn’t just seen in Ethereum. Its “killers” are also showing growth:
- Polygon. This year, developers increased the intensity of the code by 335%.
- Arbitrum. Developer activity on the network rose by 516% since the beginning of the year.
- Solana. The network saw growth in developer activity by over 1,000% since the beginning of the year.
- Optimism. Blockchain developers also showed tremendous activity growth in the ecosystem, increasing the intensity by more than 1,000%.
Recall that China is a potential leader in blockchain development, but developers from the U.S. and South Korea aren’t far behind.
