Lighter has announced the launch of LighterEVM, introducing Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) support to its platform. This upgrade allows developers to deploy universal smart contracts directly on Lighter, marking a shift from its original role as a high-performance trading engine to a comprehensive blockchain and DeFi platform. LighterEVM will enable the operation of DeFi applications similar to Uniswap and Aave, facilitating deep integration of trading, lending, and shared liquidity pools to enhance overall efficiency and reduce the risk of incentive-driven manipulation. Additionally, Lighter is exploring ways to further reduce system latency and is considering "synchronous execution" solutions to support more complex DeFi scenarios.