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Metis Annual Report - 2025
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Overview

Metis is a Layer-2 blockchain platform designed to scale Ethereum with a focus on decentralization, security, and high-performance execution. Built as a Smart Layer 2, Metis emphasizes low fees, fast finality, and decentralized sequencing, enabling applications that require predictable performance without sacrificing decentralization. The network positions itself at the intersection of Web3 and the emerging AI economy, supporting use cases across decentralized finance, gaming, and AI-native applications.

Throughout 2025, Metis advanced its infrastructure and ecosystem toward a more unified, AI-ready blockchain stack. The year reflected progress across economic alignment, developer adoption, AI-focused tooling, and real-world application development. The sections that follow outline the key protocol developments, ecosystem initiatives, and application-layer growth that defined Metis’s trajectory over the past year.

Key Developments: 2025

  • The Metis Foundation passed the Ecosystem Unification & Economic Model Evolution proposal, establishing long-term alignment across Metis, ZKM, GOAT, and LazAI. Key changes include: DSeq mining rewards optimization (reduced from 20% to 15% annually), establishment of Ecosystem Alignment & Growth Reserve (EAGR) with 20% of total METIS supply, and LazAI officially adopting $METIS as its native gas token. This creates structural integration unifying the economic model across network layers, enabling the expanded ecosystem to operate as a unified, multi-layer infrastructure. The proposal represents a pivotal moment in Metis's evolution, creating direct usage-driven demand for METIS across all AI operations while establishing the foundation for long-term sustainability.
  • LazAI launched its Alpha Mainnet on December 22, 2025, marking the first phase of verifiable, onchain assetization for AI data through Data Anchoring Tokens (DATs). The platform enables AI interactions to be recorded as tradeable blockchain assets with enterprise-grade infrastructure featuring one-second block times and Ethereum-anchored settlement. This milestone transitions LazAI from experimental testnet to production-ready decentralized AI infrastructure with real economic value and provable data ownership.

Ecosystem

Enterprise & AI Infrastructure

  • LazPad has launched Open Launch on Metis Andromeda, enabling the permissionless creation and launch of memetic AI agent tokens in an environment where price discovery, liquidity formation, and community validation emerge organically through a Bonding Curve. The platform reflects the deeper convergence of AI and DeFi by building ecosystems in which value is not imposed through upfront listings or speculation, but instead shaped through interaction, participation, and co-creation. At the core of this model are Data Anchoring Tokens (DATs), which transform AI agents into memory-aware, evolving onchain assets that grow richer through community engagement and real usage over time. Through its Explore Zone, Open Launch, and Premium Launch structure, LazPad allows agents to prove relevance through genuine adoption, cultural momentum, and co-building contributions before graduating into full liquidity. By tying agent activity, data contribution, and community-driven validation directly into token formation, LazPad enables creators and users to collaboratively create, test, and scale AI-native assets where sustainable value is anchored in real engagement rather than hype.

  • Metis Foundation showcases its unified stack: Andromeda provides battle-tested settlement with $0.01 fees and sub-2-second finality. Hyperion extends this with AI-optimized infrastructure boosting throughput by 50%. LazAI transforms infrastructure through Data Anchoring Tokens (DATs) that bind provenance and revenue to datasets. ZKM provides zero-knowledge verification. GOAT Network brings Bitcoin into the AI economy as a Bitcoin L2. GMPayer enables AI agent payments via x402 protocol. Together they form a cohesive Web3 AI infrastructure stack. \

  • CreateAI launched as a creative art marketplace for the AI economy, turning AI-generated content into verifiable, ownable assets through Data Anchoring Tokens (DATs). The platform minted 20,000 pieces in three hours, demonstrating immediate demand. DATs anchor identity and attribution to every creation, enabling an economic loop where agents create, users engage, and payments flow through GMPayer's x402-powered system. The platform runs on Metis blockchain for low fees, fast finality, and decentralized architecture. \

  • GMPayer launched with x402 protocol, creating a multi-currency payment hub for AI agents, developed by LazAI in collaboration with ZKM, and supported by both Metis and GOAT Network. It enables instant, trustless, pay-per-request payments across multiple blockchains and currencies without centralized intermediaries, accounts, or human intervention, making x402 operational across multiple blockchain ecosystems. \

  • HyperHack 2025 brought 130+ ideas to life, with $200K in prizes and innovative AI-native projects now live on Hyperion Testnet. The hackathon demonstrated strong developer interest in building AI-native applications on Metis infrastructure, with 40+ projects shipped on Hyperion Testnet. The event highlighted Metis's position as a leading platform for AI-blockchain convergence. \

  • Lazbubu reached 12,193 daily active users, proving AI companions have arrived. The platform marks a new era for user-driven AI, where users mint, grow, and evolve their own AI Companions on LazAI Testnet, shaping their onchain life through daily interaction. This demonstrates the growing demand for interactive AI agents and digital companions in the Web3 space. \

  • Metis built the first live Decentralized Sequencer to keep transaction ordering public, fair, and outside SEC exchange scrutiny. This innovation addresses a major regulatory obstacle for Layer 2 networks, maintaining true decentralization while ensuring compliance with securities regulations. The decentralized sequencer represents a significant technical achievement that differentiates Metis from other Layer 2 solutions.
  • As part of the Artemis x DSEQ Reboot Campaign, Metis allocated 4,000 oMETIS to Art-Points holders across three distribution periods. Art-Points represent user activity and contributions within the Artemis ecosystem, with rewards distributed based on engagement and participation. This initiative rewards active participation and maintains strong user engagement within the Metis-Artemis ecosystem, incentivizing long-term liquidity provision and staking activities.

NFTs & Gaming

  • DeFi Kingdoms launched a comprehensive PvP tournament series exclusively on Metis, bringing competitive gameplay with over $75,000 in prizes distributed across multiple tournament tiers. The structure includes Daily Skirmishes (Monday-Friday, $5 entry), Weekend Warriors (Saturday-Sunday, $10 entry), Champion Invitational (monthly, $20 entry with $1,000 first place), and the All-Star Tournament (final event, $200 entry with $10,000 grand prize). Starting May 7, any player, project, or guild can host their own PvP tournaments directly within the DeFi Kingdoms ecosystem, with organizers receiving 25% of tournament entry fees. The platform also launched Patrols, an entry-level Player vs Environment (PvE) combat system with a free-to-try mode, allowing anyone to experience the game without owning Heroes. DeFi Kingdoms dominated Metis transaction volume with 1.66 million transactions (31.8% of total), reflecting the platform's strong gaming presence on the network.

Onchain Data

Daily Transactions

Metis demonstrated robust transactional activity throughout 2025, with an average of 46,528 daily transactions and peaks reaching 288,433. The year showed consistent throughput with notable activity spikes throughout the year, reflecting strong protocol usage and ecosystem engagement. Notable activity surges occurred during major ecosystem developments including DeFi Kingdoms PvP tournament launches, Aqualis Protocol launch, HyperHack events, and LazPad Open Launch. The network maintained resilience with daily transaction volumes consistently above 11,000, demonstrating Metis's capacity to handle diverse workloads from gaming applications like DeFi Kingdoms to DeFi protocols and AI-native infrastructure. This sustained activity aligns with the network's expanding role in AI-blockchain integration, where projects like LazAI, CreateAI, and GMPayer leverage Metis's low fees and fast finality for onchain AI operations.

Daily Active Addresses

Metis maintained a healthy base of active addresses throughout 2025, averaging 10,667 daily active addresses with peaks reaching 176,442. The year showed periodic surges in user activity, particularly during major ecosystem developments including Hyperion Testnet launches, HyperHack hackathon events, LazPad Open Launch, CreateAI marketplace launches, and DeFi Kingdoms tournament series. These activity spikes demonstrate growing user engagement across diverse use cases, from gaming and entertainment (DeFi Kingdoms) to DeFi protocols (Netswap, Aqualis, Artemis) and AI-native applications (Lazbubu, CreateAI). The consistent user base reflects Metis's expanding appeal across multiple sectors, from traditional DeFi to cutting-edge AI infrastructure, as the network continues to onboard new partnerships and protocols.

Top Entities by Users and Transactions

Metis's top entities by users and transactions highlight a diverse ecosystem anchored by gaming, DeFi, and cross-chain infrastructure. DeFi Kingdoms dominated transaction volume with 1.66 million transactions (31.8% of total), reflecting the platform's strong gaming presence on Metis. Netswap led DeFi activity with 1.46 million transactions (28.0% of total), while LayerZero and Axelar Network demonstrated significant cross-chain infrastructure usage. Axelar Network led in user activity with 212,451 unique users (58.4% of total), showcasing Metis's role as a cross-chain hub. The ecosystem's distribution reinforces Metis's dual role as both a high-performance gaming platform and a DeFi infrastructure layer, with cross-chain protocols serving as critical connectivity infrastructure for the expanding AI-blockchain ecosystem.

Closing Thoughts

2025 has marked a transformative year for Metis, positioning the network as a leading infrastructure provider for the AI-blockchain convergence. The network's robust onchain metrics, averaging 46,528 daily transactions and 10,667 daily active addresses, demonstrate sustained ecosystem engagement and growing adoption across diverse use cases. The year's strategic developments reflect a clear evolution toward AI-native infrastructure: from Hyperion Testnet enabling onchain LLMs to LazPad's Open Launch for permissionless AI agent creation, and from CreateAI's cultural economy to GMPayer's autonomous AI payments.

The Ecosystem Unification proposal represents a pivotal moment, aligning Metis, LazAI, ZKM, and GOAT Network under one economic model and establishing the foundation for long-term sustainability. This structural alignment, combined with LazAI's adoption of $METIS as its native gas token, creates direct usage-driven demand for METIS across all AI operations. The network's dual-architecture approach, Andromeda for general-purpose settlement and Hyperion for AI-optimized execution, provides the flexibility needed to support both traditional DeFi and cutting-edge AI applications.

Onchain data reveals a mature ecosystem where gaming (DeFi Kingdoms) and DeFi (Netswap) serve as primary drivers of transaction volume, while cross-chain infrastructure (Axelar Network, LayerZero) enables broad connectivity. The network's capacity to handle diverse workloads, from high-frequency gaming transactions to AI inference operations, demonstrates its technical readiness for the next wave of decentralized applications. As Metis continues to bridge traditional Web3 with the emerging AI economy through partnerships, infrastructure development, and community-driven innovation, the network enters 2026 well-positioned to advance its mission of enabling a decentralized, AI-ready blockchain infrastructure that serves both human and AI agents.

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Disclosure: The authors of this content and members of Nansen may be participating or invested in some of the protocols or tokens mentioned herein. The foregoing statement acts as a disclosure of potential conflicts of interest and is not a recommendation to purchase or invest in any token or participate in any protocol. Nansen does not recommend any particular course of action in relation to any token or protocol. The content herein is meant purely for educational and informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as financial, investment, legal, tax or any other professional or other advice. None of the content and information herein is presented to induce or to attempt to induce any reader or other person to buy, sell or hold any token or participate in any protocol or enter into, or offer to enter into, any agreement for or with a view to buying or selling any token or participating in any protocol. Statements made herein (including statements of opinion, if any) are wholly generic and not tailored to take into account the personal needs and unique circumstances of any reader or any other person. Readers are strongly urged to exercise caution and have regard to their own personal needs and circumstances before making any decision to buy or sell any token or participate in any protocol. Observations and views expressed herein may be changed by Nansen at any time without notice. Nansen accepts no liability whatsoever for any losses or liabilities arising from the use of or reliance on any of this content.