Intent-centric Architecture: Exploring New Frontiers in Web3 User Experience

Recently, there has been a significant increase in attention within the Web3 space towards "intent-centric( protocols and infrastructure". This trend is seen as a new driving force for the popularization of Web3, with the core goal of greatly improving user experience and simplifying complex transaction processes. This article will explore the concept, applications, and challenges of intent-centric from a practical application perspective.

1. The Essence of Intent-centric

The concept of "Intent" can be traced back to the design philosophy of the DEX Wyvern Protocol in 2018. Unlike traditional trading, the Intent-centric model places greater emphasis on the consistency and accuracy of outcomes rather than the precision of the execution process.

For example, in the traditional token swapping process, users need to perform multiple steps: transfer ETH as gas fees, authorize the transaction, and submit the swap transaction. In the intent-based trading model, users only need to sign to express their intention to swap, such as "Exchange X tokens for as many Y tokens as possible, willing to accept a 1% fee."

The intent-centric protocol is essentially a set of signed contracts that allows users to outsource the transaction process to a third party while retaining full control over the transaction. Users simply need to specify their goals, and one signature can complete all operations.

This model is similar to the development trajectory of the traditional internet, from early vertical services, to mid-term service aggregation platforms, and finally to late-stage intelligent platforms. The intent-centric architecture is considered a key pathway to expand the Web3 user base.

![Interpreting the intention-centered landing challenges from UniSwapX and AA])https://img-cdn.gateio.im/webp-social/moments-9734cc7eb1283be85dfe490019888cf4.webp(

2. Typical Applications of Intent-Centric

Although the concept of Intent-centric has just emerged, there are already quite a few related projects. Many projects, although not universal intent solutions, are essentially also user intent-centric. Currently, UniswapX and ERC4337 are considered to be the forefront representatives of Intent-centric implementation.

) 2.1 UniSwapX: A New Model of Intent-Driven Trading

UniswapX is a new permissionless, open-source auction-based routing protocol for trading across AMMs and other sources of liquidity. It employs an off-chain matching and on-chain settlement order book model, fundamentally transforming the traditional AMM transaction mechanism.

The operation process of UniswapX is as follows:

1. User end: Select order, sign, and publish to the order book service cluster.
2. Fillers Endpoint: Scan various data sources, analyze the optimal trading links, and participate in bidding.

The economic model design of UniswapX ensures that both parties in the transaction, ### users and Filler (, can benefit, creating a positive feedback loop. This model effectively addresses many limitations DEX faces compared to CEX, such as trading costs, MEV, slippage losses, and other issues.

![Interpreting the intent-centered landing challenges starting from UniSwapX and AA])https://img-cdn.gateio.im/webp-social/moments-b22e51138519742e0184ef8313db4c6e.webp(

) 2.2 ERC4337: Infrastructure for Intent Implementation

ERC4337, as an important standard for account abstraction ###AA(, provides the necessary infrastructure support for Intent-centric. It achieves a true gasless transaction model through smart contract accounts and a paymaster system.

The core value of ERC4337 lies in:

1. Provide a more universal gas-free solution than Yuan trading.
2. No need to modify existing contracts, with forward compatibility.
3. Supports highly customizable features, such as social recovery, project party paying Gas, etc.

In the future, more and more Dapps may adopt the ERC4337 paymaster system to provide users with gas-free services, thereby cultivating user habits and the ecosystem.

3. Challenges of Implementing Intent

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

1. Limitations of AI applications: In financial systems, stability and interpretability are crucial. AI can currently only serve as an auxiliary tool for intent parsing.

2. IntentPool Design Challenges: It is necessary to find a balance between decentralization and centralization, addressing the issue of dissemination mechanisms while avoiding centralized auditing and intervention.

3. Intent for Privacy Protection: The irreversibility of signatures brings privacy risks. The development of new privacy-preserving intent languages like juvix) may become a solution.

4. Conclusion

Intent-centric architecture marks the beginning of Web3's focus on genuine user needs, paving the way for the popularization of Web3. The future Intent model may adopt a fee-sharing model similar to UniswapX, or achieve profitability through user tiering.

The DeFi sector may be the stage where Intent first blooms. Several DeFi protocols have begun to explore the development and application of intent engines. In the future, how to establish a market or collaborative standard framework for intent solvers, enabling the combination and reuse of different solvers, will be an important issue facing this field.

The standardization process may require top-down promotion. Currently, projects like DappOs and Anomo are leading the way and are worth looking forward to.