Most blockchains (Ethereum, Solana, etc.) follow an account-based model where assets are represented as balances tied to addresses. Sui introduces an object-centric model, where every asset is an object with its own unique ID, ownership rules, and metadata. This makes assets programmable, composable, and transferable without relying on smart contract state variables.

Benefit for devs: Fewer chances of re-entrancy bugs, easier NFT/game asset management, and more scalable transaction parallelization.

Pitfall to avoid: Treating objects like account balances; instead, think of them as standalone entities with defined ownership.

On most blockchains like Ethereum, everything revolves around accounts and balances, meaning all transactions update a shared global state. This often creates bottlenecks because every action has to pass through that single state, slowing down processing and sometimes leading to conflicts. Sui flips this model by making objects the core unit. Each token, NFT, or asset is an object with its own owner and version, which allows independent transactions to run in parallel if they do not touch the same object. This makes the system faster and more scalable while still being secure. For developers, it also means your logic feels closer to the real world since you treat assets as individual items instead of abstract entries in a ledger. By reducing global state dependencies, Sui avoids common problems like reentrancy bugs and improves user experience with quicker confirmations.

Read more here: Sui Object Model.

Sui’s Object-Centric Model vs. Account-Based Blockchains 1.** Abstraction**

• Account-based (Ethereum, Solana): State tied to accounts (balances, storage).
• Sui: State = objects (coins, NFTs, assets) with unique IDs.

2. Ownership

• Account-based: Assets belong to an address.
• Sui: Each object explicitly stores its owner (user, object, or shared).

3. Execution & Parallelism

• Account-based: Conflicting writes → serialized.
• Sui: Independent objects → can execute in parallel.

4. Safety

• Account-based: Bugs can cause double-spends/reentrancy.
• Sui: Move + resource types prevent duplication/loss of assets.

5. User Experience

• Account-based: Users manage balances at addresses.
• Sui: Users directly interact with objects (NFTs, coins, positions).

In short: Sui treats everything as objects with ownership, enabling parallel execution, safer asset handling, and richer logic, unlike account-based blockchains.