Author: Yuliya, PANews
The high and volatile Gas fees on Ethereum have long been a stubborn obstacle to its mass adoption, and a persistent pain point for both developers and users. Against this backdrop, a bold vision aimed at making Gas “invisible”—ETHGas—was born. Recently, PANews had an exclusive conversation with the founder of ETHGas, delving into how they started from an epiphany during the pandemic to build a “Realtime Ethereum.” This interview reveals how ETHGas is pioneering the creation of a financial market for “block space,” and, through the “Open Gas Initiative” in collaboration with leading protocols, jointly drawing and realizing a blueprint for an extremely user-friendly “Gasless Future.”
Epiphany During the Pandemic: Reshaping Gas from a “Transaction Tax” into a “Financial Market”
PANews: As I understand, the idea for ETHGas was born during the special period of pandemic isolation. What industry pain points did you observe at that time? And what was the “epiphany moment” that prompted you to build a “Realtime Ethereum” and dedicate yourself to making Gas “invisible”?
ETHGas: Haha, yes, that was an unforgettable time. I was stuck in a hotel with nothing to do but watch the markets. I witnessed the frenzy of DeFi Summer, but also saw the huge friction behind it: Gas fees soared like a runaway beast, ordinary users were either deterred or had their transactions stuck, and the experience was terrible. I thought, this is like a beautifully designed highway, but the toll booths are chaotic, charge randomly, and sometimes even block you from entering. This can’t be the future.
The “epiphany moment” was when I realized the problem wasn’t Gas fees themselves, but how we treat them. We’ve always regarded them as an unavoidable “tax,” rather than a manageable financial market. I thought, if we can build financial markets for airline fuel and farmers’ grain, why can’t we do the same for Ethereum’s block space? This idea was the starting point for us to build “Realtime Ethereum” and realize “invisible Gas.”
“Gasless Future”: Paving the Way for the Next Billion Users
PANews: Currently, the vast majority of Ethereum users see Gas fees as an unavoidable transaction friction. But ETHGas’s vision is to make Gas “invisible.” Can you paint a picture of this “Gasless Future”? Why is achieving this vision crucial for Ethereum’s next wave of mass adoption?
ETHGas: Of course. What we call the “Gasless Future” is essentially a return to a seamless, everyday experience.
Imagine you go to your favorite coffee shop to buy a latte. You’re not asked to pay an extra, uncertain “electricity fee” at checkout, and the price of coffee doesn’t change every second based on how busy the power grid is. You only care about the price and taste of the coffee. That’s because the shop owner has already handled the electricity cost as part of their operating expenses in the background.
But on today’s Ethereum, every transaction is like paying this unstable “electricity fee”—that is, the Gas fee. It’s confusing, full of uncertainty, and is the “last mile” obstacle preventing Web3 from reaching the mainstream.
By making Gas “invisible,” we are removing this barrier, enabling Ethereum to truly achieve mass adoption and paving the way for the influx of the next billion users.
PANews: The ETHGas solution is very unique. Instead of simply lowering Gas fees, you are pioneering the creation of a financial market for “block space.” Can you explain in layman’s terms how this turns the abstract concept of “block space” into a standardized asset that can be traded like stocks or options?
ETHGas: Our core is to transform a chaotic, unpredictable market into a structured financial market. You can think of it this way: before ETHGas, buying block space was like shopping in a crowded, disorderly street market—you never knew the real price or whether you could get what you needed.
ETHGas has built a platform for block space akin to the “New York Stock Exchange.” We’ve created standardized products, such as “Inclusion Preconfirmations.” Now, a protocol can purchase a guarantee to ensure its transaction is included in the next block at a fixed price. In this way, we’ve turned block space from an abstract concept into a predictable, tradable, and hedgeable financial asset, greatly improving the operational efficiency of on-chain capital.
“Realtime Ethereum”: The Era of Millisecond Settlement
PANews: You’ve proposed the concept of “Realtime Ethereum,” claiming to achieve millisecond-level transaction settlement. How is this achieved? What previously unimaginable possibilities does this extreme speed and certainty unlock for traders and developers?
ETHGas: “Realtime Ethereum” is a direct result of our block space market. Because builders and protocols can now pre-purchase inclusion guarantees for future blocks before they are produced, they can operate with absolute certainty. They know exactly that their transaction will be successfully included on-chain, and when it will happen.
This unlocks many possibilities that were previously impossible due to network latency. For high-frequency traders, it provides a decisive competitive edge. For project teams, it means they can build instant-settlement applications—complex apps that were previously impossible due to network delays and congestion are now possible, making the experience truly “instant.”
Ecological Flywheel: “Open Gas Initiative” and Win-Win Cooperation
PANews: To promote the “Gasless Future,” you launched the “Open Gas Initiative.” Can you reveal which leading protocols are currently collaborating with ETHGas? How will you work together to create a Gasless experience for end users?
ETHGas: The “Open Gas Initiative” is an alliance we launched to build a stickier, more user-friendly Web3. We are honored to announce that industry leaders such as ether.fi, EigenLayer, and Pendle have become our first founding partners, with more partners to be announced in the future.
Our cooperation model is very simple: through our platform, they can sponsor Gas fees for users’ transactions. For example, when a user stakes on a protocol platform, the protocol pays the Gas cost, and then the user can directly claim this rebate from the ETHGas dashboard. We turn the project’s cost center—Gas fees—into their most powerful user acquisition and retention tool.
PANews: This sounds like a powerful growth loop: validators provide block space, attracting protocols to join, and protocols bring in massive users. So, in this loop, how do you incentivize validators and staking operators to join the network and provide “fuel” for the entire ecosystem?
ETHGas: You’ve hit the nail on the head—this is the core engine of our growth flywheel. Our incentive logic for validators is both simple and direct: bring them market-driven, higher returns.
Through our block space trading platform, validators are no longer passively earning unstable MEV income. They can actively package their block space into high-value, programmable financial products for sale, opening up a brand new, stable, and often higher-yielding source of income.
As the ecosystem develops, stakers and protocols will gradually recognize the existence of these excess returns, prompting their staking service providers to connect to ETHGas. By offering the most competitive staking returns in the market, we drive growth on the supply side of the entire ecosystem.
Two-Step Strategy: From Gas Rebates to Permanent Cost Hedging
PANews: ETHGas has launched the much-anticipated “Open Gas Initiative,” gathering top industry protocols. What role does this initiative play in your “Gasless Future” campaign? Is it a short-term market campaign, or is it the first cornerstone for a permanent, sustainable “Gasless Model”?
ETHGas: This is definitely the starting point for a permanent, sustainable model. The Gasless Future campaign is our entry point for guiding users into the ETHGas ecosystem. First, it gamifies the Gas cost, providing intuitive market education for users; second, it allows protocols to verify the huge boost in user activity brought by the “Gasless experience.”
This initial stage allows protocols to immediately see the huge, direct impact of providing a Gasless experience on user retention and activity, laying the foundation for the next stage of development.
PANews: So starting from Gas rebates, what’s next? How will you help protocol partners transition from “subsidizing Gas” to a more mature model?
ETHGas: This is the key to achieving long-term sustainability. Gas rebates are just the first stage. As our block space financial market matures, we will introduce more sophisticated tools for our partners. This includes products like “Base Fee Futures,” which allow protocols to hedge against Gas price volatility.
They will no longer passively pay Gas fees, but can proactively lock in Gas costs for the next month or quarter, just like airlines hedge their fuel costs. This will turn Gas from an unstable operating expense into a predictable, manageable budget item, enabling true long-term financial planning and a permanent Gasless user experience.
PANews: Looking ahead, what is the next key milestone for ETHGas? For those eager to join this transformation and co-build the ecosystem, do you have any specific advice?
ETHGas: Our blueprint is becoming reality step by step. Recently, we released Chapter 2 of the “Gasless Future” campaign, officially launching the long-awaited Gas Report Card for the community.
This is not just a feature update, but also our commitment to the future. And this future needs to be built by all of us together—whether you are a user, developer, or validator, you have an indispensable role:
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To all users: Please actively participate in the “Gasless Future” campaign! It’s not just about checking your Gas report or claiming a rebate—it’s about voting with your actions for a future of Ethereum that benefits everyone. Your voice and choices are the fundamental driving force behind this transformation.
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To developers and protocol teams: This is a great opportunity to turn user experience from a “pain point” into a “highlight.” We sincerely invite you to join the “Open Gas Initiative,” so we can leave the complex Gas issues behind the scenes and bring the smoothest, most seamless experience to your users, making it your unique core competitiveness.
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To validators: We invite you to join the highest-yielding, most predictable value network on Ethereum. Please contact us to explore how your block space can unlock unprecedented value.
The “Gasless Future” is not an unattainable dream, but a project and community challenge we are tackling together. Follow @ETHGasOfficial on X and join us in building the future side by side.
