Starknet scaling and the Cairo smart contract language

Starknet transactions cost $0.01 on average. This L2 validity rollup uses Cairo to handle computations. Because Cairo executes complex computations off-chain and then proves them on-chain with succinct, trustless STARK proofs, developers build applications that process massive computational data with efficient verification and incredibly low transaction costs for all users. The $150 million DeFi incentive program provides liquidity to the ecosystem. Starknet uses native account abstraction to allow flexible contract design for all accounts. This allows users to approve transactions via face ID or use simplified multi-signature contracts. Developers use Scarb to manage projects and compile code. Python and JavaScript provide the most common interfaces for wallet integrations and deployment scripts. Starknet belongs to the category of ZK rollups that generate cryptographic proofs of validity. These rollups provide faster finality than optimistic rollups, which rely on a 7-day challenge period. For comparison, Arbitrum and Optimism have average transaction costs of $0.02. Starknet leads in developer growth with a 39% year-over-year increase in full-time developers. L2s collectively hold $40 billion in TVL. Starknet is a primary destination for high-performance applications.

Onchain Gaming and Dojo

Dojo Engine provides a framework for creating fully on-chain games and provable applications on Starknet. Projects like Realms and Influence use Cairo to build their logic. Realms includes a universe of fully onchain games ruled by $LORDS. In the game Influence, players compete for dominance in the newly formed colony within the Adalian asteroid belt, which contains 250,000 asteroids. In the first release of Influence, players focus on creating colonies and the foundation of a player-driven in-game economy. Subsequent stages include Discovery and Conflict, where gamers focus on technology advancements and inter-asteroid conflicts. Loot Survivor is an immutable arcade machine enabled by ZK circuits. The structure of the asteroid belt adheres to the principles of real-world orbital physics. Dojo simplifies the work of developers through implementations of contracts, models, and systems.

However, the lack of practical examples and well-structured guides for Dojo makes the learning curve challenging for new developers. You likely already understand basic programming logic.

Cairo Programming Logic

Developers use the felt252 type for all numeric data in Cairo. This type is an element of the prime field used by the Cairo VM. Cairo also includes fixed-width integers like u8 through u256 and signed integers from i8 to i128. The language compiles code into an intermediate representation called Sierra, which then compiles into Casm, a low-level language that the CairoVM understands.

Variables in Cairo stay immutable by default. Developers use the mut keyword to enable mutation. The const keyword defines fixed values known during compilation. A function marked with the #[executable] attribute is an entry point for the Cairo runner. The let keyword handles variable declarations. Functions in Cairo support parameter passing and return values. The language provides the println! macro to print output followed by a newline and the print! macro to print output inline. In a function, the result is automatically returned if the last expression does not have a semicolon. Arithmetic on felt252 values follows modular arithmetic. If a result exceeds the maximum value, it wraps back to zero. Developers use integer types for general arithmetic because they provide built-in overflow protection.

How will AI agents handle the two-step declare-then-deploy flow?