This week, we spotlight Hemi Network, a modular Layer-2 that bridges the two largest blockchains by volume and capitalization with a decentralized infrastructure backbone.

Origin Story

Hemi was born from the idea that Bitcoin and Ethereum shouldn’t exist in isolated silos. In 2024, Bitcoin core veteran Jeff Garzik and security expert Max Sanchez set out to create a network that converges the strengths of both. Unveiled at Bitcoin 2024 in Nashville, Hemi’s testnet quickly gained traction, processing millions of transactions and attracting a robust community through an incentivized program. By March 2025, Hemi launched its mainnet with over 50 projects on board, marking the first-ever Layer-2 that effectively treats Bitcoin and Ethereum as one combined ecosystem.

Tech Stack

Under the hood, Hemi is built on the OP Stack (Optimism’s modular rollup framework) but pushes beyond the standard formula. It runs on a Cosmos SDK-based infrastructure fused with a geth-derived Ethereum Virtual Machine. The twist? Hemi’s EVM, called hVM, is upgraded to include a full Bitcoin node. This means every Hemi node is aware of Bitcoin’s state (block headers, UTXOs, etc.) in addition to running the Ethereum consensus layer. Consensus is secured by Proof-of-Proof (PoP)– Hemi’s validators periodically commit snapshots of the chain to Bitcoin, leveraging Bitcoin’s proof-of-work for finality. Blocks on Hemi confirm in seconds, while PoP mining imbues them with Bitcoin-level security within a few hours. It’s a novel hybrid of an optimistic rollup (for scalability) and Bitcoin anchoring (for security).

Details on the Hemi Tech Stack are described in the following blog post: https://hemi.xyz/blog/inside-the-hemi-tech-stack/

Feature Spotlight

Hemi’s unique architecture unlocks features previously unattainable in a single network. For one, it enables trust-minimized crosschain bridges: Hemi’s native Tunnel contracts allow BTC to move onto Hemi and back to Bitcoin without centralized custodians. Developers can write smart contracts that directly verify Bitcoin transactions, opening the door to Bitcoin DeFi – think lending, derivatives, and stablecoins collateralized by real BTC, all enforced by code. Additionally, Hemi supports gasless transactions and advanced asset controls (like timelocks and password-protected transfers) at the protocol level. This improves UX, letting users move assets (even BTC) on Hemi without needing to hold a native gas token. In short, Hemi combines the programmability of Ethereum with the liquidity and security of Bitcoin in ways we’ve never seen before.

Ecosystem Overview

Since its mainnet debut, Hemi has been steadily growing as a crosschain DeFi hub. By late 2025, over 4.3 million transactions will have been secured via PoP checkpoints, and the network currently boasts $900M+ TVL across dozens of dApps. Notable projects include DEXes like SushiSwap and DODO, lending platforms like LayerBank, and infrastructure protocols like LayerZero and RedStone oracles launching on day one. Hemi’s DeFi scene has a strong focus on Bitcoin liquidity (e.g., wrapped BTC yield farms and even BTC restaking opportunities).

The network’s unique ability to handle both ERC-20 tokens and native BTC (via pegged representations) in one place has attracted over 50 launch partners ranging from AMMs to NFT marketplaces. With a $15M war chest from investors and a thriving community (Discord, Telegram, and quarterly hackathons), Hemi is positioning itself as the go-to chain for projects that need true Bitcoin-Ethereum interoperability.

Why DIN?

Hemi’s ambitious “supernetwork” approach demands equally resilient infrastructure. That’s where DIN comes in. From day one, Hemi’s public RPC endpoints are served through a federation of providers rather than a single service. This aligns with Hemi’s ethos of decentralization and reliability. For developers and users, DIN integration means:

• High uptime: If one provider has issues, others seamlessly take over, keeping Hemi’s API online 24/7.

• Low latency: DIN’s global network of nodes routes requests to the nearest/fastest provider, ensuring snappy responses even as Hemi’s usage scales.

• Censorship resistance: No single company or cloud hosts the RPC. Requests are distributed across independent providers meeting Infura’s strict quality criteria.

In practice, building on Hemi via Infura+DIN feels no different than using Infura for Ethereum or other chains, except you have an extra layer of assurance that the service won’t go down or become a bottleneck. This robust backend is critical as Hemi targets high-volume DeFi use cases and global users who expect consistent performance.

Roadmap & Governance

What’s next for Hemi? In the near term, the team is focused on fully decentralizing the network’s operations. Since the successful Hemi token (HEMI) launch, the team is focusing attention on transitioning governance to its community – enabling on-chain voting, stake-based validation, and economic incentives for PoP miners. On the technical front, Hemi’s roadmap includes enhancing its PoP protocol to allow external chains to leverage Bitcoin finality via Hemi. In other words, Hemi could become a security hub where other new blockchains plug in to get Bitcoin-grade security (a concept playfully dubbed “Bitcoin-security-as-a-service” in the community).

Moreover, being built on the OP Stack, Hemi is primed to participate in Optimism’s Superchain vision, meaning it could achieve seamless interoperability with other OP-based L2s. On governance, Hemi Labs currently guides upgrades and improvements, and is working on a more decentralized governance model with Hemi Improvement Proposals (HIPs) and community-elected validator sets. The ethos is similar to Ethereum’s path: start centralized for speed, then progressively decentralize as the network and community mature.

Community & Developer

Onboarding Hemi is making a concerted effort to welcome developers from both the Bitcoin and Ethereum worlds. For Ethereum devs, the experience is frictionless – all your usual tools (Remix, Hardhat, Ethers.js/Viem, MetaMask) work out-of-the-box on Hemi. Comprehensive docs are available, including quickstart guides and even examples of Solidity contracts using Hemi’s Bitcoin features (check out the Hemi Bitcoin Kit section in the docs).

For Bitcoin developers and enthusiasts, Hemi provides new toys to play with: you can write smart contracts that respond to Bitcoin events and even use Sats (via wrapped BTC) in DeFi strategies. The community runs active Discord and Telegram channels for support, and there’s a grants program to fund innovative dapps (recently, grants have targeted BTC yield protocols and crosschain wallet integrations).

Hemi’s incentivized testnet (with its Points leaderboard) successfully drew in thousands of testers, and similar incentive programs are planned for mainnet (like a potential airdrop for early users post-TGE, to be confirmed). In short, if you’re a developer interested in pushing the envelope of multi-chain dapps, Hemi’s community is ready to onboard you with documentation, support, and possibly funding for your idea.

Hemi + Infura

Available Now One of the best parts about Hemi’s launch is that it’s immediately accessible through familiar infrastructure. As of today, Hemi is live on the MetaMask Developer Dashboard (formerly Infura dashboard) – which means if you have an Infura API key, you already have access. Just select “Hemi” from the network list, and you can start querying the chain or deploying contracts.

Both Hemi’s testnet and mainnet endpoints are available, backed by Infura x DIN’s multi-provider network for reliability. No need to run your own node or worry about finding a third-party RPC. This ease of access lowers the barrier to entry for experimenting with Hemi. Have an existing Ethereum dapp that could benefit from Bitcoin integration? Point it at Hemi’s RPC and give it a try. The combination of Hemi’s tech and Infura’s infrastructure is enabling developers to build what was previously impractical: truly trust-minimized crosschain applications.

Resources

Interested in building on or learning more about Hemi? Here are some resources to get you started:

• Official Website: https://hemi.xyz – Learn about the Hemi vision and explore the ecosystem.

• Documentation: https://docs.hemi.xyz – Developer docs, tutorials, and references (everything from running a node to using the hVM).

• GitHub: https://github.com/HemiLabs – Hemi’s source code (feel free to inspect, contribute, or run your own nodes).

• Hemi on Twitter/X: https://x.com/hemi_xyz – Follow for the latest announcements and technical threads.

• Community Chat: https://discord.gg/hemixyz – Join Hemi’s Discord to ask questions or share ideas with fellow builders.

• Analytics: L2Beat – Hemi – See up-to-date metrics on Hemi’s Layer-2 (TVL, usage stats)

With Bitcoin and Ethereum finally coming together on Hemi, we’re witnessing the emergence of a new breed of dapps. If you’ve been waiting for a chain that gives you the best of both worlds — Bitcoin’s trust and Ethereum’s innovation — Hemi might just be the platform to build your next big idea. And with decentralized infrastructure support from day one, it’s never been easier to get started. Happy building! 🚀