StarkNet's Cairo-VM, while innovative, poses challenges for the developer ecosystem. Its unique architecture, optimized for STARK proofs, demands developers learn Cairo, a language with a steep learning curve due to its low-level nature and cryptographic complexity. Unlike the familiar EVM and Solidity, Cairo lacks widespread tooling support, making debugging and testing less intuitive. The transition from Cairo Zero to Cairo 1.0 improved usability, but limited documentation and community resources hinder adoption. Projects like Kakarot zkEVM aim to bridge EVM compatibility, yet developers face fragmented liquidity and interoperability issues. These barriers slow StarkNet’s ecosystem growth, as developers accustomed to Ethereum’s mature tooling hesitate to invest in mastering Cairo, despite its scalability benefits. Enhanced tooling and education are crucial to unlock Cairo-VM’s potential.