Exploring Intent-centric Architecture: Grounding Challenges from UniswapX and Account Abstraction

A recent report released by the well-known Web3 venture capital firm Paradigm lists "intent-centric protocols and infrastructure" as the top trend in the cryptocurrency sector. Combined with discussions on related projects at the ETHCC conference, the industry is highly focused on the Intent-centric architecture and this track. This architecture aims to significantly enhance user experience by completely hiding the complexities of transaction details, and is seen as a new driving force for the popularization of Web3.

This article will discuss the essence, applications, and challenges of Intent-centric from the implementation history of Solver and the two major landing applications of ERC4337 and UniSwapX.

1. The essence of intent-centric

As early as 2018, the DEX Wyvern Protocol introduced the concept of "intention" in its design philosophy. Unlike traditional trading, ordinary users are more concerned with the consistency and accuracy of the results, rather than the details of the execution process.

Taking Token exchange as an example:

• Traditional trading: requires 3 transactions ( to transfer ETH for gas, authorize approve, and submit swap )
• Intent to trade: Users only need to sign to express intent (, such as exchanging X tokens for as many Y tokens as possible, willing to pay a 1% fee ).

The "intention"-centered protocol allows users to outsource the transaction process to third parties while maintaining full control over the transaction. Users only need to specify their goals, and a single signature can complete all operations.

This development trend is similar to the evolution of the internet: from early vertical services, to mid-term service aggregation platforms, and finally to later intelligent platforms. The intent-centric concept is appealing, but whether it can be successfully implemented still requires further discussion.

2. Typical Applications of Intent-centric

Although the concept has only recently been proposed, there are already a number of related projects. Many projects are essentially also user intent-centric.

Currently, many protocols are not general intent solutions, but rather solutions for specific domains, such as Uniswap, Seaport, etc. ERC-4337 serves as the infrastructure for intent realization, reducing users' reliance on native gas through bundlers.

From a business model perspective, UniswapX and ERC4337 are at the forefront of Intent-centric implementation.

2.1 Economic Design of UniSwapX

UniSwapX addresses issues such as MEV by changing the AMM transaction mechanism. It is a permissionless, open-source, auction-based cross-AMM routing protocol.

UniSwapX adopts an off-chain matching on-chain transaction order book model. Users only need to select orders, sign them, and wait for the Filler to complete the transaction. The Filler needs to scan various data, analyze the optimal transaction path, and participate in bidding.

The economic model of UniswapX creates a virtuous cycle: users receive a better trading experience, fillers earn fee dividends, and complex on-chain trading routes are decentralized to the backend system. This win-win economic model is conducive to practical implementation.

2.2 ERC4337 and Intent-centric

ERC4337, as the infrastructure for account abstraction, is crucial for achieving a pure intent transaction model. It verifies user signatures through the EntryPoint contract, and the Bundler batches user operations for on-chain execution.

The Paymaster system of ERC4337 provides a universal and trustworthy payment mechanism, which benefits project parties by offering users gas-free services, thereby fostering user habits and ecosystem engagement. This model is similar to the user subsidy strategies of the mobile internet era, making it possible for intent-centric implementations.

3. Challenges of Implementing Intent

Despite the broad prospects of Intent-centric, its implementation still faces many technical challenges:

The contradiction of combining with AI 3.1

Although AI can assist in intent parsing, the financial system pursues stability and consistency. The incomprehensibility and irreducibility of AI in asset permission management limit its application range.

3.2 The design challenges of IntentPool

IntentPool faces the trade-off between decentralization and centralization. The decentralized model has issues with the propagation mechanism, while the centralized model struggles with audit and intervention issues. Designing an intent discovery matching mechanism that balances incentives and decentralization remains a challenge.

3.3 Intent on Privacy Protection

The irreversibility of signatures brings privacy risks. Some projects like Anomo are exploring the standardization of intent and privacy issues. The development of new privacy-preserving intent languages such as Juvix is also underway.

4. Conclusion

The rise of the intent-centric concept indicates that Web3 is beginning to focus on the actual needs of users, paving the way for widespread adoption. In the future, the intent model may achieve sustainable development from the perspective of transaction fee revenue or user tiering.

DeFi may become the first field where Intent flourishes. Multiple DeFi protocols have begun to expand their functionalities to meet users' diverse intents. However, achieving a universally standardized intent solution while balancing the economic interests of all parties remains a challenge.

The standardization process may require top-down definitions. Currently, projects like DappOs and Anomo are leading the way in this regard, which is promising.