- Neon EVM’s CCO Davide Menegaldo on Scaling Ethereum dApps Through Solana
- Solana Meets Ethereum: Davide Menegaldo Breaks Down Neon EVM’s Game-Changing Approach
Blockchain ecosystem often feels like isolated islands, each thriving but disconnected. Developers face steep learning curves, different coding languages, and the constant need to adapt to new environments. That’s where Neon EVM steps in— a bridge that doesn’t just connect ethereum and Solana but brings the best of both worlds together.
Imagine deploying your Ethereum dApp on Solana without learning Rust or juggling two technical stacks. Neon EVM makes this possible, opening doors to Solana’s unparalleled speed, low transaction costs, and vibrant user base. In this conversation, Davide Menegaldo, CCO of Neon EVM, takes us behind the scenes of this revolutionary technology and its mission to empower developers everywhere.
1. Could you start by introducing Neon EVM and explaining its core objective in the Solana ecosystem?
Neon EVM is the first of its kind—a Network Extension on Solana—designed to provide Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) compatibility to Solana. By operating natively within Solana base layer, Neon EVM provides Ethereum developers with a pathway to deploy their EVM dApps on that L1 without the need for Rust coding.
We want to enable Ethereum developers to reduce the time-to-market and deploy their existing EVM codebase while tapping into the Solana audience, which is substantially different from the archetype of Ethereum userbase and can represent a business opportunity for emerging projects.
2. Neon EVM is described as Solana’s “network extension” rather than a traditional Layer 2. Could you clarify this concept and how it differs from typical Layer 2 solutions?
From a tech perspective, a network extension is a specialized module that adds specific functions to Solana or broadens its Execution, Settlement, Consensus, or Data Availability while preserving the chain value. The chain value is referred to the value provided to users and developers, which is perceived as fragmented liquidity and user experience in case of L2s and unified in the case of network extension. Furthermore, a standard L2 sequences its own transactions on L2 network and settles to L1, while a a network extension executes transactions directly on Solana.
This definition fits Neon EVM, which uses Solana validators to broadcast EVM transactions and all Solana core capabilities as underlying layers, extending L1 functionality rather than scaling the L1 itself.
3. With Neon EVM allowing developers to use EVM-compatible languages like Solidity and Vyper, how does this eliminate the learning curve and open Solana to more Ethereum developers?
When an Ethereum dev starts exploring Solana, the journey does not only consist of learning a new language and a different coding logic, but also getting familiar with tools, testing environments, APIs, RPCs, scripts and plugins.
With Neon EVM, devs avoid a multi-month phase by maintaining the coding language and environment they are familiar with.
4. What are some of the key benefits for developers using Neon EVM compared to building directly on Solana?
Developers can benefit from a direct deployment using existing Ethereum smart contracts with little or no modification, leveraging the same codebase, and Ethereum’s well-established tools and libraries, like Truffle, Hardhat, and Remix. This reduced the need to maintain two different stacks, which come with security challenges and a dedicated workforce.
With the SDK we built and will make available in the next weeks, builders can integrate Solana wallets and let users pay gas fees in SOL using the Solana network (defined as Solana-native wallet signature). The key benefit is a full abstraction of Neon EVM, allowing the user to have the same experience as interacting directly with a Solana dApp.
5. Security is a major focus, as indicated by the 11 audits completed. How does Neon EVM ensure a high level of security for developers and users?
Auditing firms have been selected based on their deep knowledge of Solana as well as Ethereum architecture, and we build long-lasting relationships with leading security firms like Halborn, Neodyme, Least Authority, and Ackee Blockchain – which conducted independent security audits of the Neon EVM Program, Proxy, infrastructure, and Neon DAO. A few more audits are ongoing as we are improving the architecture with the Solana-native wallet signature.
Upgrades follow a strict process, from internal testing to devnet release, and reach mainnet only when the version has demonstrated stability over a set timeframe.
6. Parallelization, composability, and modularity are core components of Neon EVM. Could you elaborate on how these features benefit the performance and flexibility of applications?
These three features—parallelization, composability, and modularity—are fundamental to Neon EVM’s architecture and offer significant benefits for developers and users.
Parallelization means multiple transactions can be processed at once, vastly improving throughput and reducing bottlenecks. Since Neon EVM is built on Solana, we inherit Solana’s Sealavel Parallel Tech and leverage its unique transaction ordering mechanism. Transactions involving different smart contracts are executed in parallel, unlocking the benefits associated with local gas fees.
Composability is achieved through direct protocol-level integration, enabling advanced functionalities like minting an SPL token to one account and then transferring it from that account to another using a solidity smart contract on Neon EVM.
Modularity ensures the segregation of resource-intensive operations across distinct layers, ensuring that computational, storage, and consensus mechanisms operate independently. By separating user layers from execution and storage, developers amplify their dApps throughput and can design complex use cases efficiently.
7. Solana co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko and the community have supported the “network extension” concept. What kind of impact has this support had on the adoption and perception of Neon EVM?
Without a clear definition of its product, Neon EVM was facing difficulties in market positioning, community engagement, and developer adoption.
The terminology was initially launched by Austin Federa, and we officially adopted this vertical with the release of the blog post “Neon EVM: Pioneer of the Solana Network Extensions”.
Anatoly and the Solana community’s support has been instrumental in pointing out Neon EVM as a primary example of network extension.
This debate then became part of a Twitter Spaces series, and involved several stakeholders from the Solana ecosystem like Squads, Pyth, MagicBlock, Arcium and Alex Kehaya.
While today it’s still possible to hear questions about Neon EVM being considered an SVM L2, it’s easy to clarify its positioning by classifying it as a network extension.
8. Can you share any success stories from dApps that have successfully deployed on Neon EVM, and the results they’ve seen?
The first set of deployed dApps demonstrated the EVM compatibility on top of Solana, with ecosystem builders deploying forks of Aave, Compound, Uniswap. The activity on those protocols has been fostered by the Points Program, reaching up to 200k tx/day and 10k daily active users: https://neon.blockscout.com/stats
While these protocols provide the opportunity to interact with Solana tokens, the next batch of applications leveraging SDK and Solana-native wallet signature will represent the catalyst for Neon EVM thanks to the removal of UX barriers.
9. The Neon ecosystem includes tools like NeonScan, NeonPass, and BlockScout. How do these resources help developers effectively monitor and manage their dApps?
BlockScout is one of the most widely used and explored by EVM developers, allowing builders to verify smart contracts and read, write, and interact with contracts. In parallel, NeonScan gives developers an alternative interface to monitor transactions, smart contracts, and overall network statistics.
NeonPass offers a simple and secure way to provide an ERC-20 interface to SPL tokens, allowing them to be used by EVM dApps – but this represents a legacy tool. With the SDK and Solana-native wallet signature, NeonPass will not be required anymore: dApps will integrate Solana wallets and users will directly pay SOL fees.
10. For aspiring developers or teams interested in Neon EVM, what resources and programs are available to get them started on Solana using their existing EVM tools?
We offer a variety of resources to help developers get started on Neon EVM. Our documentation provides in-depth guides on setting up your development environment, deploying dApps, and using Neon’s ecosystem tools and products (NeonScan, NeonPass etc). Additionally, we have a strong Integrations team that supports developers at all stages on test stand, devnet and mainnet launch of their dApp.
We are also very active at events where we often sponsor hackathons and conduct live demos and workshops. Our active developer community is also a great place to collaborate and learn from others, mainly on Discord and Telegram.
11. Lastly, how do you see Neon EVM evolving over the next few years, and what impact do you envision it having on the Solana and Ethereum ecosystems?
Over the next few years, we expect Solana to strengthen its leadership in the blockchain ecosystem – mainly driven by its DeFi adoption, network performance, effective scaling, fast execution, and focus on consumer apps.
The combinations of these factors will amplify the differences between Solana and Ethereum userbase, creating an opportunity for builders to tap into the two most active communities at the same time and with minimal effort.
The two ecosystems are not mutually exclusive but complementary, with the largest developer hub (Ethereum) interested in being part of the fastest-growing ecosystem (Solana).
The next years might show a wider adoption from TradFi, Web2 companies, and non-crypto audience, with Solana positioned as the most performant and scalable network. The EVM compatibility provided via Neon will represent the main gateway to attract the increasing interest from Solidity developers in having multi-chain product placement.
Neon EVM offers a fresh perspective on blockchain interoperability— one that prioritizes developer ease and ecosystem collaboration. By functioning as a network extension rather than a traditional Layer 2, it preserves that core value of both Solana and Ethereum while fostering synergy.
As Neon EVM evolves, its role in bridging this ecosystem will continue to shape how decentralized applications are built and scaled.
