Web3 Mini Programs: Analyzing the Prospects and Challenges of MetaMask Snaps

MetaMask Snaps is a visionary project that can be seen as a mini-program in the Web3 world, also known as dApplet. This concept is not unfamiliar to developers, especially for Chinese developers who are familiar with internet terms such as "ecosystem building" and "super apps."

Although Snaps has been launched for nearly a year and its concept was proposed four years ago, the general awareness among ordinary users is still quite limited. Even cryptocurrency enthusiasts who use MetaMask every day may know nothing about Snaps. However, when explained as "similar to mini programs," developers often show a knowing smile.

This situation is reminiscent of the circumstances when WeChat Mini Programs were first launched. Due to the unclear functionality entry points, the initial usage was very low. Only after moving the entry point to a dropdown position on the homepage did the usage significantly increase. For MetaMask, how to effectively attract users into its ecosystem will be a critical issue that needs to be addressed.

Since its inception, mini-programs have sparked controversy in the internet industry. Many front-end engineers believe that they are merely commercial tools for giants to monopolize traffic and create closed ecosystems, contributing little to technological development. The value that Web3's Snaps can bring to the community remains to be seen. According to the documentation provided by MetaMask, future Snap developers may face many limitations 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 quite a long time to understand and prepare.

Currently, there are no dedicated personnel for developing Snaps, but developers of mini-programs in the Web2 field generally report a poor development experience. Although mini-programs use the front-end ecosystem, they are usually a stripped-down version, and various restrictions make developers need to overcome various technical barriers.

Snaps may face a similar situation. For security reasons, it operates in an isolated secure environment, using "Secure ECMAScript," which imposes certain restrictions on the JavaScript API, such as preventing access to the DOM, Node.js, and browser plugin APIs.

The basic Snaps functionality is limited, and most features require obtaining the corresponding permissions. During installation, Snaps needs to request permissions from the user, including lifecycle, transactions, signatures, and CRON, etc.

The MetaMask official website categorizes Snaps into four types:

1. Account Management: Mainly improves private key security through MPC technology. Currently, there are three Snaps: Capsule, Silent Shard, and Safeheron.

2. Interoperability: Providing compatibility with non-EVM networks, including Solana, Cosmos, Near, Sui, etc. This type of Snaps occupies more than half of the ecosystem.

3. Notifications and Chats: Although the user base is currently small, the potential for the future is enormous.

4. Security: There is a high demand, especially in improving MetaMask's warnings against phishing transactions. Security Snaps account for 20% of the total, second only to multi-chain support.

MetaMask is attempting to expand its domain to other chain platforms through Snaps, but the degree of its success remains in question. Drawing from the experience of Web2 mini-programs, simplified services often struggle to compete with full-fledged apps, and updates to new features are often delayed. If Snaps develops smoothly, more wallets might follow suit, which could impose an additional workload on Web3 developers.

In the future, various "Snaps-like" platforms may emerge, and developers will need to cope with the significant differences between these platforms. This could ultimately lead to the birth of the Snaps Standard and discussions around various "SIPs", promoting the thriving development of the community.

Nevertheless, MetaMask Snaps is still a product built by passionate developers aimed at solving real problems. However, for most MetaMask users, Snaps is not yet a necessary feature. MetaMask may need to invest more effort in effective promotion.