Optimistic Oracle

The optimistic oracle (OO) supplies reference values on demand. It assumes a proposed value is correct unless someone disputes it, so most of the time no vote is needed and settlement is fast and cheap.

When a value is requested

A price request is raised when a synthetic expires (anyone can trigger it), when a liquidation is disputed, or when a keeper initiates a rebalance on an event-triggered synth.

Propose

A proposer submits a value and posts a bond, in return for the request's reward (the ooReward set when the synthetic was created). The bond is what they lose if the value is successfully disputed.

Liveness window

If no one disputes the proposed value before the window closes, it resolves as-is. Positions can then settle against it.

Dispute and escalation

A disputer posts a matching bond to challenge the value. The request escalates to a dispute-resolution vote, which decides whether the dispute is valid:

• Valid dispute: the value is corrected by the vote, typically within 48–96 hours, and the disputer takes the proposer's bond.
• Invalid dispute: the originally proposed value stands and the disputer loses their bond.

Because every step is bonded, the oracle is secured by economic incentives rather than trust. It is also a real source of risk: an undisputed wrong value can settle, and a dispute can take days.