Cathie Wood, CEO of Ark Invest, praised the Ethereum Foundation’s plan to include zero-knowledge (zk) technology right into its core framework. The Ethereum Foundation shared this vision in a blog post on July 10, showcasing how zk could enhance scalability and improve privacy.
On X, Wood recognized that she may not be aware of every technical detail but lauded the direction. She added that the vision resonates well with what institutions need. Her stamp of approval has lended more credibility to Ethereum’s journey towards a zk-powered infrastructure.
The Ethereum Foundation aims to tackle decentralization and reduce validator workload alongside enhancing scalability. As per Ark Invest’s research associate Raye Hadi, the plan involves two major changes. First, upgrading Ethereum’s virtual machine (EVM) to be zk-friendly and second, adopting stateless verification so validators check proofs instead of re-running transactions. Resultingly, this could cut bandwidth and hardware costs, improving network efficiency without harming security.
Ethereum’s new design involves a shift in how blocks get verified. Builders assemble blocks and generate zk-proofs to confirm validity. Validators then verify these proofs without executing each transaction again. Consequently, this speeds up the network while preserving decentralization.
Moreover, the Ethereum Foundation wants block proofs to be ready in under 10 seconds. The cost of zk hardware should not exceed $100,000, with proof sizes below 300KiB. This makes it practical for wider adoption. Additionally, Ethereum’s approach includes quantum-resistant security standards, adding future-proofing to its roadmap.
In a reply to an X post by Raye Hadi, Succinct’s Uma Roy pointed out how their technology behind zkVM makes real-time proving on Ethereum possible. This new-age zk tech can potentially raise Ethereum’s gas limits while upholding transparency.