## **Overview** Moonbeam is an Ethereum-compatible smart contract platform. It provides an EVM implementation and Web3-compatible API. This Ethereum compatibility allows developers to deploy existing Solidity smart contracts and DApp frontends to Moonbeam with minimal changes. As a parachain on the Polkadot network, Moonbeam benefits from the shared security of the Polkadot relay chain and integrations with other chains that are connected to Polkadot. ## **History** Moonbeam is a smart contract platform built using the Substrate blockchain framework. The firm behind the protocol is PureStake, a development outfit that also built developer tools for Algorand and runs Polkadot validators. PureStake began work on Moonbeam in early 2020. The network also receives support from the Moonbeam Foundation. As of now, there are three networks in the Moonbeam family. While Moonbeam aims to be the EVM compatible parachain within the Polkadot ecosystem, its sister network, Moonriver, launched as a parachain on Kusama in June 2021. Moonbeam and Moonriver have nearly identical underlying technology. Moonriver may receive new features first before they get deployed to Moonbeam. The two share a testnet called Moonrock. In the six months following its testnet launch in September 2020, [several projects ](https://moonbeam.network/community/projects/)signalled their intention to build on Moonbeam. These projects included partnerships with [Linear Finance](https://messari.io/asset/linear), [Sushi](https://messari.io/asset/sushiswap), [Injective Protocol](https://messari.io/asset/injective-protocol), and [Bet Protocol](https://app.betprotocol.com/). The mainnet [full launch](https://moonbeam.network/networks/moonbeam/launch/) is due for mid Jan-22.