{"id":37456,"date":"2022-01-19T20:10:39","date_gmt":"2022-01-19T18:10:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/?p=37456"},"modified":"2025-08-29T17:16:21","modified_gmt":"2025-08-29T14:16:21","slug":"what-is-avalanche-avax","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/what-is-avalanche-avax\/","title":{"rendered":"What is Avalanche (AVAX)?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-text-wrappers-cards single_card\">\n<h2 class=\"card_label\">What is Avalanche?<\/h2>\n<p>Avalanche is an open-source platform for launching decentralised applications and deploying public and private blockchains within a single, scalable ecosystem.<\/p>\n<p>Avalanche comprises a Primary Network and an unlimited number of Subnets.<\/p>\n<p>The Primary Network includes three blockchains:<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Platform Chain (P-Chain)<\/strong> stores metadata, coordinates validators and tracks subnets;<\/li>\n<li><strong>Contract Chain (C-Chain)<\/strong> enables Ethereum-compatible smart contracts;<\/li>\n<li><strong>Exchange Chain (X-Chain)<\/strong> provides tools for cross-subnet data exchange and for creating fungible tokens and <span data-descr=\"non-fungible token\" class=\"old_tooltip\">NFT<\/span>s.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Avalanche Subnets resemble Ethereum L2 solutions and <a href=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/news\/what-is-polkadot-dot\">parachains<\/a> in Polkadot, but with fully isolated blockchain states.<\/p>\n<p>Any Avalanche user can create a Subnet by paying a fee of <a class=\"tracking_link\" href=\"https:\/\/docs.avax.network\/learn\/platform-overview\/transaction-fees\/#fee-schedule\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">0.01 AVAX<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>All Avalanche nodes must validate transactions on the Primary Network and may, optionally, validate other Subnets.<\/p>\n<p>Subnet creators can set various parameters\u2014run multiple blockchains and define their own validator requirements, such as mandatory KYC\/AML.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-text-wrappers-cards single_card\">\n<h2 class=\"card_label\">Who created Avalanche, and when?<\/h2>\n<p>The first publication about Avalanche appeared on May 16, 2018, when an anonymous developer group, Team Rocket, posted the paper <a class=\"tracking_link\" href=\"https:\/\/ipfs.io\/ipfs\/QmUy4jh5mGNZvLkjies1RWM4YuvJh5o2FYopNPVYwrRVGV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Snowflake to Avalanche: A Novel Metastable Consensus Protocol Family for Cryptocurrencies<\/a> on the official IPFS website.<\/p>\n<p>A day later Cornell University professor Emin G\u00fcn Sirer <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/el33th4xor\/status\/997083849954914304\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">commented<\/a> on the publication on Twitter:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><em>\u201c<\/em>Yesterday someone posted this paper on IPFS and a few IRC channels. It describes a new family of consensus protocols that combines the advantages of Nakamoto consensus with the best classical protocols. A huge breakthrough.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>That year, Emin G\u00fcn Sirer, together with colleagues Kevin Sekniqi and Maofan Yin, founded <a class=\"tracking_link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.avalabs.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ava Labs<\/a>, the lead developer of the Avalanche platform.<\/p>\n<p>In 2019, Ava Labs and Team Rocket published an updated version of <i>Snowflake to Avalanche<\/i> titled <a class=\"tracking_link\" href=\"https:\/\/arxiv.org\/pdf\/1906.08936.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Scalable and Probabilistic Leaderless BFT Consensus through Metastability<\/a>. The company uploaded it alongside three <a class=\"tracking_link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.avalabs.org\/whitepapers\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">white papers<\/a> on the token, stablecoins and the Avalanche platform.<\/p>\n<p>In 2020, Ava Labs raised $12m in a private token sale and $42m in a public sale.<\/p>\n<p>The Avalanche mainnet launch <a href=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/news\/avalanche-mainnet-goes-live\">took place<\/a> on September 21, 2020.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-text-wrappers-cards single_card\">\n<h2 class=\"card_label\">Which consensus protocols does Avalanche use?<\/h2>\n<p>The <a class=\"tracking_link\" href=\"https:\/\/assets.website-files.com\/5d80307810123f5ffbb34d6e\/6008d7bbf8b10d1eb01e7e16_Avalanche%20Platform%20Whitepaper.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Avalanche Platform Whitepaper<\/a> describes a family of consensus protocols called <i>Snow*<\/i>, comprising three mechanisms: <i>Avalanche, Snowman and Frosty<\/i>.<\/p>\n<p>To date, the team has implemented <em>Snowman<\/em> on P-Chain and C-Chain, and <em>Avalanche<\/em> on X-Chain. <em>Frosty<\/em> is in development.<\/p>\n<p>The <em>Avalanche<\/em> protocol uses a <a href=\"https:\/\/ru.bitcoinwiki.org\/wiki\/%D0%9D%D0%B0%D0%BF%D1%80%D0%B0%D0%B2%D0%BB%D0%B5%D0%BD%D0%BD%D1%8B%D0%B9_%D0%B0%D1%86%D0%B8%D0%BA%D0%BB%D0%B8%D1%87%D0%B5%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B8%D0%B9_%D0%B3%D1%80%D0%B0%D1%84_(DAG)\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">directed acyclic graph<\/a> (DAG), allowing the network to process transactions in parallel.<\/p>\n<p>To determine transaction validity, validators query one another at random. No additional confirmations are required.<\/p>\n<p>In <i>Avalanche<\/i> there are no blocks: the protocol operates with parent transactions\u2014<a class=\"tracking_link\" href=\"https:\/\/docs.avax.network\/learn\/platform-overview\/avalanche-consensus#vertices\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">vertices<\/a>. They allow validators to group transactions for voting. Confirmation proceeds stepwise across a series of rounds.<\/p>\n<p><em>Snowman<\/em> is built on <em>Avalanche<\/em> but orders transactions linearly and creates blocks instead of vertices. This suits smart contracts and increases throughput.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-text-wrappers-cards single_card\">\n<h2 class=\"card_label\">How does the Avalanche protocol work?<\/h2>\n<p>On the Avalanche Hub blog, an author under the pseudonym Seq <a class=\"tracking_link\" href=\"https:\/\/medium.com\/avalanche-hub\/avalanche-consensus-the-biggest-breakthrough-since-nakamoto-66e9917fd656\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">explains<\/a> confirmation or rejection of transactions using the example of nodes collectively choosing yellow or blue.<\/p>\n<p>Nodes pick a colour, then query one another. If a node\u2019s choice differs from the majority, it switches its decision.<\/p>\n<p>A node picks yellow and sends queries to five random peers (circled in red). Most of them are blue, so the sender changes colour.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"522\" height=\"532\" src=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/image1-490.png\" alt=\"\u0427\u0442\u043e \u0442\u0430\u043a\u043e\u0435 Avalanche (AVAX)?\" class=\"wp-image-162157\" srcset=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/image1-490.png 522w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/image1-490-294x300.png 294w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 522px) 100vw, 522px\" \/><\/figure>\n<p>This interaction continues in stages until all nodes converge on one colour.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"181\" height=\"181\" src=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/image2.gif\" alt=\"\u0427\u0442\u043e \u0442\u0430\u043a\u043e\u0435 Avalanche (AVAX)?\" class=\"wp-image-162158\"\/><\/figure>\n<p>Response time is bounded, filtering out nodes that introduce excessive latency.<\/p>\n<p>Nodes are sampled at random; however, the chance of participating in transaction checks rises with the amount of Avalanche tokens staked.<\/p>\n<p>A more detailed description of Avalanche\u2019s consensus appears in the project\u2019s <a class=\"tracking_link\" href=\"https:\/\/medium.com\/ava-russia\/avalanche-consensus-family-slush-metastability-87fbdca9b4a8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Russian-language blog<\/a>, AVA Russia.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-text-wrappers-cards single_card\">\n<h2 class=\"card_label\">What is AVAX\u2019s role in the ecosystem?<\/h2>\n<p>Avalanche (AVAX) is the platform\u2019s native token with a 720m supply cap. The protocol <a href=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/news\/what-is-coin-burning-and-how-does-it-affect-prices\">burns<\/a> all transaction fees, making AVAX a deflationary asset.<\/p>\n<p>The token is used to:<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>stake, with an annual yield of <a class=\"tracking_link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.avax.network\/validators\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">11%<\/a>;<\/li>\n<li>pay <a class=\"tracking_link\" href=\"https:\/\/docs.avax.network\/learn\/platform-overview\/transaction-fees\/#fee-schedule\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">fees<\/a>;<\/li>\n<li>settle transactions within Avalanche Subnets.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-text-wrappers-cards single_card\">\n<h2 class=\"card_label\">How to become an Avalanche validator<\/h2>\n<p>Network validator requirements:<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><b>stake:<\/b> 2000 AVAX on P-Chain;<\/li>\n<li><b>hardware:<\/b> 8-core CPU &gt;= 2 GHz; RAM: 16 GB; 200 GB of free disk space;<\/li>\n<li><b>software:<\/b> <a class=\"tracking_link\" href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/ava-labs\/avalanchego\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">AvalancheGo<\/a> by Ava Labs;<\/li>\n<li><b>operating system:<\/b> Ubuntu &gt;= 18.04 or macOS &gt;= Catalina;<\/li>\n<li><b>internet connection:<\/b> IPv4 or IPv6 with an open public port and bandwidth of at least 30 Mbps.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>You can manage a node with the <a class=\"tracking_link\" href=\"https:\/\/wallet.avax.network\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Avalanche Wallet<\/a> web wallet. It also lets you connect a node or delegate funds to other validators.<\/p>\n<p>A validator node installation guide is available in the project\u2019s <a class=\"tracking_link\" href=\"https:\/\/medium.com\/ava-russia\/staking-avax-53deb95d8c4\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Russian-language blog<\/a>, AVA Russia.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-text-wrappers-cards single_card\">\n<h2 class=\"card_label\">How to delegate funds in Avalanche Wallet<\/h2>\n<p>Tokens for staking must reside on P-Chain. If they are on C-Chain or X-Chain, open the <a class=\"tracking_link\" href=\"https:\/\/wallet.avax.network\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Avalanche Wallet<\/a>, go to the <b>Earn<\/b> tab and perform a cross-chain transaction.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"585\" src=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/image5-84-1024x585.png\" alt=\"\u0427\u0442\u043e \u0442\u0430\u043a\u043e\u0435 Avalanche (AVAX)?\" class=\"wp-image-162159\" srcset=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/image5-84-1024x585.png 1024w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/image5-84-300x171.png 300w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/image5-84-768x439.png 768w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/image5-84.png 1522w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption>Avalanche Wallet interface. The Earn tab is in the wallet\u2019s side menu.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Ensure your node is synced with the Avalanche network. Then add it to the wallet\u2014enter the node identifier in the <strong>Node ID<\/strong> field.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"571\" src=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/image3-169-1024x571.png\" alt=\"\u0427\u0442\u043e \u0442\u0430\u043a\u043e\u0435 Avalanche (AVAX)?\" class=\"wp-image-162160\" srcset=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/image3-169-1024x571.png 1024w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/image3-169-300x167.png 300w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/image3-169-768x428.png 768w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/image3-169-1536x856.png 1536w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/image3-169.png 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption>Adding a validator in Avalanche Wallet. The command to obtain a Node ID is in the <a href=\"https:\/\/docs.avax.network\/apis\/avalanchego\/apis\/info#infogetnodeid\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">AvalancheGo API<\/a>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>In the <strong>Delegate<\/strong> tab you can delegate funds to a third-party validator: select a Node ID, then specify the amount and staking period.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"572\" src=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/image4-112-1024x572.png\" alt=\"\u0427\u0442\u043e \u0442\u0430\u043a\u043e\u0435 Avalanche (AVAX)?\" class=\"wp-image-162161\" srcset=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/image4-112-1024x572.png 1024w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/image4-112-300x168.png 300w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/image4-112-768x429.png 768w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/image4-112-1536x858.png 1536w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/image4-112.png 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption>A list of Avalanche validators that accept staking delegations.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Remember: the delegation period must not exceed the value in the <strong>End Time<\/strong> field.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-text-wrappers-cards single_card\">\n<h2 class=\"card_label\">How to add Avalanche to MetaMask<\/h2>\n<p>Open wallet settings, select <strong>Networks<\/strong> and click <strong>Add network<\/strong>. Fill in:<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Network Name<\/strong> \u2014 Avalanche Network;<\/li>\n<li><strong>New RPC URL<\/strong> \u2014 https:\/\/api.avax.network\/ext\/bc\/C\/rpc;<\/li>\n<li><strong>Chain ID<\/strong> \u2014 43114;<\/li>\n<li><strong>Currency Symbol<\/strong> \u2014 AVAX;<\/li>\n<li><strong>Block Explorer URL<\/strong> \u2014 https:\/\/snowtrace.io\/.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Click <b>Save<\/b>. Avalanche support materials include a detailed <a class=\"tracking_link\" href=\"https:\/\/support.avax.network\/en\/articles\/4626956-how-do-i-set-up-metamask-on-avalanche\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">guide<\/a> to connecting MetaMask and an <a class=\"tracking_link\" href=\"https:\/\/ecosystem.avax.network\/marketplace?tag=wallet\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">up-to-date list<\/a> of supported wallets.<\/p>\n<p>Alternatively, use <a class=\"tracking_link\" href=\"https:\/\/chainlist.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Chainlist<\/a>: click <b>Connect Wallet<\/b>, enter \u201cAvalanche Mainnet\u201d in the search bar and approve the addition in MetaMask.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-text-wrappers-cards single_card\">\n<h2 class=\"card_label\">How is Avalanche developing?<\/h2>\n<p>According to <a class=\"tracking_link\" href=\"https:\/\/defillama.com\/chain\/Avalanche\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">DeFi Llama<\/a> at the start of November 2022, over $1.3bn is locked in Avalanche-based decentralised applications. The top three include lending platforms <a href=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/news\/what-is-aave\">Aave<\/a> and Benqi, as well as the DEX Trader Joe.<\/p>\n<p>On mainnet launch day the Binance exchange <a href=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/news\/avalanche-mainnet-goes-live\">added<\/a> support for AVAX. The token now trades on Coinbase, Huobi, OKEx, Bitfinex and <a class=\"tracking_link\" href=\"https:\/\/coinmarketcap.com\/currencies\/avalanche\/markets\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">other exchanges<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>In July 2021, the non-profit Avalanche Foundation, which oversees the ecosystem\u2019s development, raised $230m in a private token sale.<\/p>\n<p>In early November the Avalanche Foundation announced the $200m Blizzard fund to support innovation across the platform\u2019s ecosystem. Backers include Polychain Capital, Three Arrows Capital, Dragonfly Capital and CMS Holdings.<\/p>\n<p>On November 16, Ava Labs head Emin G\u00fcn Sirer announced a partnership with Deloitte. The parties will launch the Close As You Go cloud platform to help people affected by natural disasters.<\/p>\n<p>On November 18, 21Shares announced the listing of an exchange-traded product (ETP) based on the Avalanche token. Since November 19 it has traded on Switzerland\u2019s largest stock exchange, SIX Swiss Exchange.<\/p>\n<p>On November 24, AVAX <a class=\"tracking_link\" href=\"https:\/\/coinmarketcap.com\/headlines\/news\/avalanche-avax-spikes-to-enter-the-top-ten-whats-behind-the-move\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">entered<\/a> CoinMarketCap\u2019s top ten by market capitalisation, exceeding $24bn.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>An explainer on Avalanche, an open-source platform for launching decentralised applications and deploying blockchains.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":37457,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"select":"2","news_style_id":"1","cryptorium_level":"1","_short_excerpt_text":"","creation_source":"","_metatest_mainpost_news_update":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2113],"tags":[2117,1413,73],"class_list":["post-37456","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cryptorium","tag-101-altcoins","tag-avalanche-avax","tag-dapps"],"aioseo_notices":[],"amp_enabled":true,"views":"136","promo_type":"2","layout_type":"1","short_excerpt":"","is_update":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37456","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37456"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37456\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":37458,"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37456\/revisions\/37458"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37457"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37456"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37456"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37456"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}