Pocket Network supports interoperability between applications and Avalanche’s subnets, promoting the nascent nature of this scalable solution. Discover more about subnets, their advantages, why Pocket is integrating with them, and how they can help the next wave of decentralized applications.

What are Subnets?

Subnets are subnetworks operating under the main network (e.g., Avalanche), where a group of members (Validators) decides on the state of that network.Imagine a subnet like an evolution of a soft fork, creating a network that operates under the main one, taking advantage of all its benefits while creating additional use-cases based on the consensus of a team. Think of a subnet as a team doing a special project with support from the original network.

Are Subnets a Solution for Crypto’s Scalability?

Subnets spark innovation within blockchain ecosystems and support new use-cases while generating network effects that benefit new projects and the original network.Subnets can provide new, more effective avenues for developers, as the main chain still manages the challenges of operating a network (e.g., security), opening the chance for developers to establish new use-cases and unlock utility for users.More specifically, subnets address two of the biggest issues related to the scalability of Web3-based apps: congestion in the main network and high gas fees.By moving additional traffic to a subnet, developers can still reap the benefits of the main network (e.g., security), while minimizing outages and controlling costs of transactions due to lower congestion.Eric Ullrich, Business Development Representative at Pocket Network, highlights the power of subnets to reduce “security breaches and gas fees” while helping individual apps to scale.The adaptability of subnets is a major selling point, even on the regulatory front, with validators having the flexibility to adjust the subnet policies and comply with new measures beyond the scalability advantage.

Which Use-Cases will Emerge with Subnets?

From DeFi to gaming and NFTs, subnets offer multiple use-cases for application developers looking for extra speed, low fees, and a better overall user experience.One of the most exciting gaming projects that Pocket currently supports is Crabada, a popular play-to-earn game in the Avalanche ecosystem, under one of its subnets, Swimmer Network.DeFi Kingdoms’s Crystalvale is another popular Web3 game, developed under Avalanche’s subnet, DFKchain, also supported by Pocket.Avalanche subnets are enabling new apps that bolster the onboarding experience of new entrants in crypto and Web3.Pocket’s Eric sees “games and large exchanges as the way to go” for subnets. For games, “gas fees are non-starters, and for exchanges, security is paramount (especially if they have liquidity pools).”Subnets can be the answer for applications, from entertainment to finance, to scale and reach mainstream adoption by “controlling their own fate with security optimizations, KYC monitoring, and even launching their own tokens.”Avalanche is supporting this trend even more by deploying $290 million in its “Avalanche Multiverse” program to foster the development of new subnets.

Pocket Supports Avalanche Subnets From the Get-Go

Pocket supports Avalanche subnets to offer developers the necessary horsepower to link their applications to blockchain data.We are leveraging the growth of new applications operating under the DFKchain Subnet and the Swimmer Network Mainnet. Apps on subnets are generating “heavy usage, which requires resilient and abundant infrastructure to handle the workload by their users,“ according to Ullrich.Pocket can offer maximum uptime, low latency, and cost-efficiency for developers with a decentralized network of approximately 30,000 nodes, facilitating the work between applications and subnets.How fast can Pocket support new subnets?“Subnets - given their node architecture - are squarely within Pocket’s sweet spot.” In reality, “Pocket can spin up a sub-net for a new application faster than anyone else while bringing thousands of nodes to the subnet essentially overnight.”If you’re building an application under the Swimmer Network or DFKchain, take advantage of the Pocket Portal and mint your own RPC endpoints!