Abstract
This AIP proposes minimizing Arbitrum Nova by transitioning it into a maintenance-oriented state with reduced capacity and deprioritized support. If approved via an offchain vote that meets constitutional quorum requirements, the minimization process will follow three structured phases aimed at limiting user disruption, supporting the migration of applications, integrations, liquidity, and funds to Arbitrum One, as well as reducing operational overhead no longer justified by Arbitrum Nova’s current usage and strategic value. Given the existing TVL and number active applications on Arbitrum Nova, this AIP recommends minimization rather than full deprecation.
Phase 1 covers the governance lifecycle of this AIP. Phase 2 introduces a 90-day migration window during which developers and users are supported in migrating to Arbitrum One while existing infrastructure remains fully operational. Phase 3 completes the transition to a minimized state by adopting a passive DAC model, shifting to a lightweight infrastructure model, deprecating most service provider contracts, and moving to a maintenance-only support model.
For context, Arbitrum Nova launched as a production proof-of-concept chain to validate the AnyTrust / Data Availability Committee (DAC) model and enable low-cost activity for emerging consumer use cases. However, teams currently seeking alternative Data Availability (DA) solutions can now launch their own Arbitrum chains, reducing demand for Arbitrum Nova. Today, Arbitrum Nova exhibits low activity, limited ecosystem attachment, and a non-trivial annual cost footprint that is primarily driven by aggregated contract and infrastructure costs. Accordingly, this AIP presents the rationale, specifications, and execution plan for minimizing Arbitrum Nova.
Rationale
Why was Arbitrum Nova Created?
Arbitrum Nova launched in 2022 as a production proof-of-concept chain designed to explore scaling tradeoffs, validate the AnyTrust / DAC model, and support low-cost activity for emerging consumer use cases such as gaming, social applications, and micropayments. Strategically, it complemented Arbitrum One by providing a lower-stakes environment to test cost structures, developer experience, and user experience, creating optionality and helping diversify the Arbitrum technology stack.
Current State
Arbitrum Nova was designed for a set of conditions and strategic needs that are no longer as relevant in today’s environment. Maintaining it in its current form continues to incur meaningful costs, while demand has shifted toward more flexible and modern solutions. As the Arbitrum platform, Ethereum, and the broader ecosystem have evolved; Arbitrum chains and the AnyTrust / DAC model (validated in part by Arbitrum Nova and widely used across Arbitrum chains) have been successfully adopted, giving teams a more direct path to launch purpose-built chains. At the same time, improvements in DA economics (particularly through the introduction of Ethereum blobs) and rollup infrastructure have led to increased cost efficiency on Arbitrum One. This means that teams that previously might have deployed on Nova can now launch their own Arbitrum chains or build on Arbitrum One. As a result, Nova has effectively fulfilled its original purpose, and its relevance and demand have declined.
Current metrics reinforce this shift. According to L2Beat, Arbitrum Nova secures ~$20.37M in TVL (compared to ~$15.67B on Arbitrum One) and processes ~0.03 transactions per second (TPS), compared to ~16 TPS on Arbitrum One.
Furthermore, to maintain Arbitrum Nova from a cost perspective, the Arbitrum Foundation (AF) annually incurs approximately:
- $1.34M in aggregated contract costs
- $180K in infrastructure costs (validator and sequencer)
- $11K in batch posting (however this is offset by fees generated by Arbitrum Nova)
This results in a total annual cost of ~$1.52M. This cost structure is difficult to justify given current usage levels.
If Arbitrum Nova is minimized, estimated annual costs would decrease to approximately:
- $60K in infrastructure costs
- $29K in aggregated contract costs
This represents a potential annual savings of ~$1.43M.
Key Terms
- Arbitrum Nova: The first Arbitrum AnyTrust Chain running on Ethereum mainnet. Introduces cheaper transactions. Implements the Arbitrum AnyTrust Protocol, not the Arbitrum Rollup Protocol protocol. Governed by the ArbitrumDAO.
- Arbitrum AnyTrust Protocol: An Arbitrum protocol that manages data availability with a permissioned set of parties known as the Data Availability Committee (DAC). This protocol reduces transaction fees by introducing an additional trust assumption for data availability in lieu of Ethereum’s Trustless data availability mechanism.
- Data Availability Committee (DAC): A permissioned set of parties responsible for enforcing data availability on a chain using the Arbitrum AnyTrust Protocol.
- Validator: A full node that monitors the chain’s state to verify the correctness of assertions and initiates fraud-proof challenges if it detects dishonest activity.
- Sequencer: An entity given rights to reorder transactions in the Sequencer Inbox over a fixed window of time, who can thus give clients sub-blocktime Soft Confirmations.
- Batch: A group of Arbitrum transactions posted in a single transaction on the Underlying Chain into the Sequencer Inbox by the Batch Poster which is an EOA controlled by the Sequencer.
Specification
If this AIP passes via an offchain vote, the minimization of Arbitrum Nova will follow a three-phase process.
We are currently in Phase 1, which focuses on the governance lifecycle of this offchain proposal. If approved, Phase 2 will prioritize user withdrawals and developer support, while Phase 3 will implement technical and operational changes, including migration to passive DAC and lightweight infrastructure models, constitutional text changes and service provider contract deprecation.
What does this mean for developers?
Developer Support (Phases 2 and 3)
Phase 2 consists of a 90-day migration window beginning immediately after the offchain vote passes. During this period, existing infrastructure will remain fully operational, and developers are strongly encouraged to migrate applications, integrations, and liquidity to Arbitrum One.
Phase 3 begins after this migration window and reflects Arbitrum Nova’s transition into a minimized, maintenance-oriented state with reduced capacity and deprioritized support.
During Phase 2, Offchain Labs (OCL) and the AF will help support developers migrating from Arbitrum Nova to Arbitrum One. Because both chains are Nitro-based and EVM-equivalent, most smart contracts can be migrated without specialized tooling or major rewrites.
However, teams are expected to handle their own application-layer migration work, including frontend updates, infrastructure changes, liquidity coordination, partner communication, and community migration.
Developers seeking support should use existing Arbitrum channels (e.g., Discord, Telegram, documentation). Support during this period will prioritize resolving practical migration blockers, including deployment issues, tooling challenges, RPC reliability, and migration planning.
The goal of Phase 2 is to provide a clear, time-bound window for teams to complete migration before Arbitrum Nova transitions to its minimized state.
At the start of Phase 3, Nova-specific developer support will be deprioritized as operational focus shifts to Arbitrum One and the chain moves to a lower-footprint model. Developers remaining on Arbitrum Nova should expect:
- Longer response times for Nova-specific questions
- Stricter rate limits on public infrastructure (e.g. RPC endpoints)
- A maintenance-only support model rather than active ecosystem support
Teams that continue operating on Arbitrum Nova after this point do so with the understanding that under this AIP, the network will persist, but with reduced support and operational resources.
What does this mean for users?
Withdrawal Support (Phases 2 and 3)
If the offchain vote passes, steps will be taken to help prevent additional user funds being bridged to Arbitrum Nova. The AF will coordinate with bridge providers (e.g. Relay, Symbiosis) to disable deposits, while OCL will engage with centralized exchanges to remove support for Arbitrum Nova deposits and withdrawals.
In parallel, users are encouraged to withdraw funds using the Arbitrum Canonical Bridge (accessible via the Arbitrum Portal), which enables direct withdrawals from Arbitrum Nova to Arbitrum One, or an alternate fast bridging solution.
For large transfers, the suggested route is:
- Withdraw from Arbitrum Nova to Ethereum via the Portal
- Wait through the 7-day challenge period
- Claim funds on Ethereum
- Bridge from Ethereum to Arbitrum One
For smaller or time-sensitive transfers, users may use fast bridging solutions (e.g. LI.FI-powered routes via Relay or Symbiosis), which offer faster withdrawals at higher fees.
It is worth noting that support for these fast bridging options depends on third-party providers and is subject to their continued support for the Arbitrum Nova network.
What does this mean for chain operations?
Migration to Passive DAC Model (Phase 3)
90 days after the offchain vote passing, Arbitrum Nova will transition to a passive DAC model by configuring the sequencer to post transaction data directly to Ethereum L1 blobs. The change should be implemented by adjusting the offchain configuration of the batchposter to post L1 blobs instead of using the DAC.
This removes operational reliance on active DAC coordination. Accordingly, DAC members can deprecate their signing infrastructure while remaining as ‘dormant’ DAC members onchain, providing a path for potential future reactivation if ever required.
Because these changes can be activated without requiring a protocol upgrade, implementation will proceed following a successful offchain vote that meets constitutional quorum requirements.
Migration to lightweight sequencer and validator infrastructure (Phase 3)
Arbitrum Nova will transition to a lightweight infrastructure model to align operational costs with reduced usage.
This includes downsizing the hardware specifications for both the Sequencer and Validator nodes from high-performance, redundant clusters, to a leaner footprint sufficient for maintenance-level activity.
Potential Impact:
- Performance & Capacity: Users may experience lower transaction throughput and moderate service interruptions due to a transition to lower-priority SLA maintenance
- Withdrawal Latency: A leaner validator footprint may result in minor delays in posting state assertions to Ethereum. While the protocol’s 7-day challenge period remains unchanged, the total time to withdraw may increase slightly (e.g., an additional 12–24 hours due to delayed assertion posting)
Service Provider Contract Deprecations (Phase 3)
90 days after the offchain vote, the majority of service provider contracts that maintain Arbitrum Nova will be deprecated by the AF.
Other Changes
Constitutional Text Changes (Phase 3)
Any required constitutional text changes will be bundled into a future onchain vote.
Steps to Implement & Timeline
The following dates are tentative and subject to change.
Phase 1
- Jan 21, 2026: Announcement of reduced third-party tool support
- May 15, 2026: AIP forum post and governance discussions
- May 28, 2026: Offchain vote (FOR / AGAINST / ABSTAIN; constitutional quorum required)
Phase 2
- Jun 4, 2026: Start of 90-day migration window (pending DAO approval)
- Maintenance of current infrastructure
- Encouraged migration of applications, integrations, liquidity, and funds
Phase 3
- Sep 2, 2026: Execution of Arbitrum Nova minimization:
- Transition to passive DAC
- Migration to lightweight infrastructure
- Service provider contract deprecations
- Q3 2026: Onchain vote for constitutional text updates