Aptos blockchain explained: Technology, use cases and prospects

What is Aptos blockchain?

Aptos is designed to be a fast, scalable, and reliable blockchain that supports decentralized applications (DApps) and aims to accelerate the growth of Web3.

Avery Ching and Mo Shaikh launched the Aptos blockchain on Oct. 12, 2022. It was developed to enable high throughput and low latency, which means it can handle about 160,000 transactions per second and, on average, validate them in less than 1 second. 

The Aptos technology natively integrates Move language to deliver these fast, secure transactions, allowing developers to write smart contracts and build DApps. Aptos provides everything you need to “build your big idea” and even incorporates artificial intelligence to make Web3 simple for newcomers and experts.

The Aptos (APT) coin is the native token of the Aptos crypto ecosystem. It powers the blockchain through transaction fees, governance and validators. To make a transaction on the blockchain, a fee is charged to the APT token, although these are incredibly low, usually less than 0.001APT or $0.0009. The initial total supply of APT started at 1 billion, with 130 million tokens in circulation at the launch distributed among the ecosystem as follows:

• 51.02% for the community
• 19% for the team, consultants, and private investors
• 16.5% for the foundation
• 13.48% for investors

The total supply of APT is set to increase to 1.5 billion by 2031. 

The project has grown exponentially since its launch, boasting a multibillion-dollar market cap and becoming a top 25 coin by October 2024.

Did you know? Both the Aptos founders, Mo Shaikh and Avery Ching, previously worked for Meta’s (Facebook) Diem team, formerly the blockchain project known as Libra. This inspired them to create Aptos without the bureaucratic red tape of working for a big organization. 

How does Aptos blockchain work?

Aptos uses the Move smart contract programming language, which allows the use of a parallel execution engine called Block-STM.

Most blockchains are limited in their total transactions per second (TPS) because they use serial transactions. This means tasks are executed one at a time in a sequential order. The Aptos blockchain features Block-STM and parallel transaction processing that enables multiple transactions simultaneously to vastly increase the network TPS.

The Aptos consensus mechanism uses proof-of-stake (PoS) combined with a unique Byzantine Fault Tolerance BFT consensus protocol for validators to collectively process transactions. Aptos simultaneously processes all transactions. This is done by capturing a snapshot of the current state and then processing them in parallel before validating them afterward. 

While this offers more speed, it can be a more costly processing method and pose a challenge in preventing transactions from interrupting each other. Failed transactions are terminated and re-executed using the software transactional memory (STM) to manage any conflicts. 

Did you know? Aptos is one of the blockchain projects that has received the most funding, raising over $200 million from Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), Coinbase Ventures and FTX Ventures, among others. This was followed up with a further $150 million funding round led by FTX Ventures.

Benefits of Aptos Blockchain

Aptos is one of the most advanced blockchains, offering low latency, high throughput and low fees to make an ideal blockchain for developers who require speed and efficiency.

• High performance and cost efficiency: Aptos offers almost instant response times, allowing transactions to be completed in less than a second, often for less than a $0.0005 fee. For context, the network can mint 1 million NFTs in 90 seconds!
• Developer-friendly: The native Move programming language is advantageous for builders. It’s easy to get started, delivering a secure and efficient environment that simplifies the process of creating new DApps on Aptos. 
• Technical innovations: Integration of PoS and BFT in Aptos along with Block-STM, formal verification and Randomness APIs set the blockchain apart from other networks while improving its scalability and performance. BFT refers to a system’s ability to continue functioning correctly even if some participants (up to a certain limit) act maliciously or fail. It ensures consensus is achieved even when some validators are unreliable.
• Security: The inclusion of Move Prover operates as a formal verifier to check the behavior of Aptos smart contracts written on the blockchain. This helps deliver robust security for applications like DeFi protocols, gaming and high-volume NFT trading.  
• Community support: Aptos has built a hugely vibrant and supportive community that is creating an excitingly collaborative ecosystem. This includes a founding team that delivers what they promise, over 350 developers joining the project and over 500,000 X followers.

Did you know? Fast time to finality, transaction speed and high throughput, and low gas are the reasons projects like SushSwap and PancakeSwap chose Aptos over other blockchains.

How to buy Aptos (APT)

Aptos (APT) can be bought on centralized exchanges like Kraken, where you can trade it for fiat currencies or other cryptocurrencies, with over 200 trading pairs available; find more exchanges on platforms like CoinGecko.

Here are the steps to buy Aptos (APT) on Kraken:

• Create your free Kraken account: Visit Kraken’s platform and sign up with your email address and country of residence.
• Connect a funding method: Fund your account using your preferred payment method, such as Visa or Apple Pay.
• Purchase Aptos (APT): Complete your Aptos purchase with as little as $10. As of Oct. 11, Kraken users have purchased 238,446 APT worth $1.96 million.

After purchasing APT on Kraken, it’s important to store your tokens in a secure cryptocurrency wallet. Choose a wallet that supports APT and ensures safe storage and easy access to your assets for transfers or transactions.

Use cases of Aptos blockchain

Organizations around the world use Aptos with over 180 DApps that solve complex challenges and provide innovative solutions.

• Gaming: Aptos provides speed for smooth gaming and safe storage of assets. Developers can create immersive game experiences that also enable true ownership and portability of in-game assets.
• NFTs: Building on Aptos delivers limitless creative freedom to design diverse NFT collections that already include Bruh Bears and MAVRIK NFTs.
• Social: Web3 is set to give users complete control of their digital social footprint. Aptos helps bring this power back to the people with onchain social media apps such as Chingari.
• Entertainment: Fans and creators can interact more personally than ever. Whether it’s buying and selling tickets, winning collectibles or sharing memorabilia all through the Aptos network.  
• DeFi: Fast and cheap transactions combined with smart contracting make Aptos a leading place for building DeFi applications. Mastercard is even building an identity verification tool, known as Mastercard Crypto Credential, on the network.

Did you know? Both Mastercard and Visa are experimenting with blockchain solutions, particularly to facilitate cross-border payments. Visa has been trialing settlement on Solana and Ethereum, while Mastercard is developing platforms like Crypto Credentials and Multi Token Network (MTN) to make the ecosystem more secure and interoperable.

Future outlook of Aptos blockchain

Enticing developers to build on the network is critical for the long-term success of the project and for maintaining market competitiveness. 

The Aptos Foundation continues to push blockchain innovation on the network, working to build a future environment with enhanced transaction speeds and cost efficiency to attract more developers.

One key feature of Aptos is the ecosystem growth. While most competitors had a head start, Aptos has had an incredible trajectory since its 2022 launch, attracting developers and large DeFi projects to its platforms. In just two years, the Aptos blockchain attracted more than 180 projects, including DeFi operators like PancakeSwap, NFT oracles like SupraOracles and launchpads like BuilderDAO.

Along with a robust community, Aptos is keen to be at the forefront of blockchain future trends and continue to differentiate itself. New integrations, like AI, could revolutionize several sectors including automation in the DeFi space and attracting new users.

The Aptos scalability is often touted as the most impressive part of the project. While some blockchains continue to suffer from outages, low throughput limits and high costs, Aptos has been developed with novel innovation and smart contract design to be a scalable building block in the future of Web3.