EthLabs Founder Barnabé Monnot Says Funding Is Near Completion in Week 2 Update

EthLabs founder Barnabé Monnot published a Week 2 update outlining the team’s progress on interoperability research, hiring, and fundraising, including plans to add 1–2 additional core investors before moving to the next stage. According to ChainCatcher, the team said it is increasingly confident in asynchronous interoperability based on zero-knowledge proofs, which it believes could support safer cross-chain bridges and improve native asset distribution across Ethereum’s multi-layer network. EthLabs said some cross-chain routes still face latency, particularly from L2 to L1. It described “intents” as a transitional approach in that context, adding that sufficient L1 liquidity can help match cross-chain solvers. For L1 to L2 transfers, the team said the Fast Confirmation Rule could significantly reduce confirmation delays, and noted that some clients have begun integrating the mechanism. In ecosystem discussions, EthLabs highlighted growing attention on PropAMMs, citing potential optimization between L1 execution efficiency and block building. The team also described ENS as key Ethereum infrastructure and said it is continuing discussions with stakeholders on its development direction. On hiring, EthLabs said it has received more than 300 applications and processed about 20% of them. It aims to expand to about 10 people in the short term and about 20 people in the medium term, focusing on engineering capability and domain expertise. On fundraising, EthLabs said the round is close to completion and has received early support from BitMNR, Sharplink, and Ethereum Joseph.