ZetaChain's on-chain governance has approved retiring the network's standalone blockchain and migrating ZETA to Solana as the project shifts focus toward private AI development.
Proposal 68 passed on September 20 with approximately 99.44% of votes in favor. According to the on-chain tally, 263.65 million ZETA tokens voted in support, while 744,658 opposed and 752,300 abstained. The vote gives core contributors a mandate to prepare the migration, though it does not immediately move tokens or shut down the network.
Strategic shift from cross-chain infrastructure
ZetaChain, founded in 2021, originally built a Cosmos SDK-based layer-1 blockchain designed to let applications interact with assets and contracts across networks including Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana. The project has since concentrated resources on Anuma, a private multi-model AI application built around what it calls a Private Memory Layer.
The project determined that maintaining its own blockchain no longer supports that effort. According to Proposal 68, operating a Cosmos-based network requires coordinating upstream security advisories and patches across dozens of independent validators—an operational burden expected to increase as AI tools make vulnerabilities easier to identify.
Why Solana
Moving to Solana would eliminate the need for independent validator infrastructure and allow contributors to focus on Anuma and AI application development. ZetaChain cited Solana's transaction speed (approximately 400 millisecond confirmations), transaction fees, and liquidity. The network hosts more than $15 billion in stablecoins and processes roughly $70 billion in monthly decentralized-exchange volume, according to the project.
ZetaChain noted that Anuma has attracted more than 300,000 users since February and processed more than 1 million requests across 35 AI models. Each Anuma account includes a wallet, potentially bringing those users into the Solana ecosystem.
Token migration and new economic role
Native ZETA balances on ZetaChain would convert 1:1 into a Solana-native SPL token under the same ticker. Total supply would remain unchanged with no additional tokens created. Once migration is complete, the Solana token would become the canonical version of ZETA and ZetaChain's L1 would wind down.
ZETA would shift from securing an independent blockchain to functioning as an access token for AI products. Anuma already allows users to lock ZETA in exchange for credits for AI usage. ZetaChain intends for other AI applications and agents on Solana to use the same system.
ZETA held on Ethereum and BNB Chain falls outside Proposal 68. Existing vesting schedules would remain unchanged. Native balances will shift from 18 decimal places to Solana's nine and be rounded down, though the proposal does not specify how fractional remainders will be treated.
Timeline dependent on exchanges
The next phase depends on centralized exchanges that list ZETA. Core contributors said they will submit a second governance proposal only after exchanges confirm how they intend to support the swap. Major exchanges require advance notice for token migrations, making the shutdown timetable dependent on those negotiations rather than a predetermined date.
The follow-up proposal is expected to establish the withdrawal window for assets on ZetaChain, snapshot and halt heights, when Solana claims begin, and how exchange-held balances convert. It will also detail holder protections and the validator wind-down process.
Staking rewards will continue until the L1 shuts down. ZetaChain said it is still exploring what staking could become after ZETA moves to Solana. Until exchanges confirm their mechanics and token holders approve them, ZetaChain will continue operating the infrastructure it has voted to retire.
