MetaMask Snaps: Mini Programs in the Web3 World

MetaMask Snaps is a project with long-term vision that can be viewed as a mini-program in the Web3 world, also known as dApplet. For developers, especially those in China, this concept is not unfamiliar. In recent years, terms like "ecosystem building" and "super App" have appeared frequently in the internet sector, where large companies are attempting to make the internet environment more closed-off, moving from service providers to standard setters. Today, this trend seems to be spreading into the Web3 space as well.

Although Snaps has existed for almost a year and has been proposed for at least 4 years, the general public's understanding of it remains very limited. Even those cryptocurrency enthusiasts who use MetaMask every day may know nothing about MetaMask Snaps. However, when it is explained to them that "it's like mini-programs," they often show a knowing smile.

This situation reminds people of the circumstances when WeChat Mini Programs were first launched. Due to the unclear function entry, the initial usage was very low. It wasn't until the entry was changed to display the Mini Program list in the homepage dropdown that usage began to increase significantly. For MetaMask, how to attract users into its ecosystem may become an important issue that needs to be addressed.

Since their inception, mini-programs have sparked controversy in the internet industry. Many front-end engineers criticize them, believing they are merely a commercial tool created by internet giants to monopolize traffic and lock down ecosystems, contributing little to technological development. The extent to which Web3's Snaps can benefit the community remains to be seen. After reviewing the documentation provided by MetaMask, it increasingly feels that future Snap developers may face numerous restrictions and challenges.

As of June 2024, the number of available Snaps listed on the MetaMask official website is only 68. Considering that the concept of Snaps was proposed around 2020, Web3 companies and developers have actually had a considerable amount of time to understand and develop it.

Currently, there are no dedicated developers for Snaps, but there are quite a few mini program developers from the Web2 field. Their general view of mini programs is that the development experience is poor. Although mini programs use the front-end ecosystem, they are a stripped-down version, with various restrictions requiring developers to step through various strange pitfalls on different platforms before they can accumulate experience.

Snaps also face similar restrictions. For security reasons, they must run in an isolated secure context, using "secure ECMAScript," which essentially imposes some limitations on the JavaScript API, such as not being able to access the DOM, Node.js, and browser plugin APIs.

The basic Snaps functionality is limited, and most features require the appropriate permissions to be granted first. Snaps need to request permissions from the user upon installation, including lifecycle, transactions, signatures, and CRON, etc.

Snaps Type

MetaMask's official website categorizes Snaps into four types:

1. Account Management

This type of Snaps mainly enhances the security of private keys through MPC technology. MPC technology can automatically split the private key into multiple parts, which are stored in different locations, and only recombined when transaction signatures are needed, without generating the complete private key, thus maximizing the protection of private key security.

Currently, there are only 3 account management Snaps: Capsule, Silent Shard, and Safeheron. They implement private key protection in different ways, but the installation volume is not high at the moment.

2. Interoperability

This type of Snaps mainly provides compatibility with non-EVM networks, including chains such as Solana, Cosmos, Near, and Sui. Currently, this type of Snaps accounts for the majority, making up more than half of the entire ecosystem.

3. Notifications and Chats

Although this type of Snaps has potential, users willing to send messages via blockchain are still in the minority.

4. Security

There is a high demand for security-related Snaps, especially in the area of transaction security. They can provide users with richer trading information and analysis, helping to avoid asset losses. Currently, security-related Snaps account for about 20% of the total.

MetaMask Snaps provides relevant permissions, allowing the Snap to read raw data when the user initiates a transaction or signature, perform analysis, and present more detailed security explanations to the user.

Future Outlook

It remains to be seen whether MetaMask's vision of expanding to other chain platforms through Snaps can be realized. Referring to the experience of mini-programs in the Web2 field, simplified services often find it difficult to replace complete apps, and new feature updates may also lag. If Snaps develops well, more wallets may follow suit, which could lead to developers needing to create multiple versions of Snaps for different wallets.

In the future, various "Snaps-like" platforms may emerge, with significant differences between them. To address compatibility issues, a Snaps standard may be established, leading to community discussion and participation.

For most MetaMask users, Snaps is currently not a necessary feature. MetaMask may need to do more promotional work to increase the popularity and usage of Snaps.