> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.metaid.io/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.metaid.io/about-metaid/history-about-metaid.md).

# History About MetaID

MetaID is not a new protocol created in 2024. The first version of the MetaID protocol was released in April 2020, based on the MetaNet protocol. Over nearly four years of development, multiple developers have jointly built a substantial infrastructure and applications. By the time V2.0 was released, MetaID had accumulated over 170,000 users and more than 21 million transactions, with more than a dozen MetaID applications being launched.

Here is a brief history of MetaID:

* April 2020: Release of V1.0 MetaID protocol, the first version supporting only the Bitcoin SV.
* April 2021: Upgrade to MetaID protocol V1.1.
* 2022: Multiple applications adopted the MetaID solution, covering Web3 social applications, cloud storage, NFT markets, games, and more, with a total user base exceeding 100,000.
* January 2023: Upgrade to MetaID protocol V1.2, adding support for multiple chains, including Bitcoin sidechain MicrovisionChain.
* May 2024: Release of MetaID V2.0, which fully supports Bitcoin and further enhances cross-chain support for UTXO-based blockchains.

## Comparison between MetaID V2.0 and previous versions

|                 Feature                 |                       V1.2                       |                         V2.0                         |
| :-------------------------------------: | :----------------------------------------------: | :--------------------------------------------------: |
|                  Vision                 | To become the best cornerstone protocol for Web3 | **To become the best cornerstone protocol for Web3** |
|          Unified tree structure         |                        Yes                       |                        **Yes**                       |
|             Based on MetaNet            |                        Yes                       |                        **No**                        |
| Adoption of Ordinals-like theory scheme |                        No                        |                        **Yes**                       |
|         Asset protocol included         |                        No                        |                        **Yes**                       |
|           Cross-chain support           |                       Weak                       |                      **Better**                      |


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