Ethereum is preparing for a significant architectural upgrade that could see a zero-knowledge Ethereum Virtual Machine (zkEVM) integrated directly into its layer-1 blockchain within a year.
In a post by Sophia Gold, a developer in the Ethereum Foundation’s (EF) protocol support team, the EF outlined a path toward replacing traditional block execution with zero-knowledge proofs (ZK-proofs).
Instead of requiring every validator to re-run transaction blocks to verify them, the system will switch to validators only checking ZK-proofs, which are tiny cryptographic receipts that confirm everything was done correctly.
The roadmap proposes allowing validators to verify execution using stateless proof verification from multiple zero-knowledge virtual machines (zkVMs), which means having multiple independent checkers verifying multiple proofs. This adds an extra layer of security without slowing things down.
Ethereum to become the largest zero-knowledge application
ZK-proofs are a cryptographic method that enables a prover to validate a claim without disclosing information about the claim itself. It allows the verification of confidential data without disclosing the data.
The EF’s initiative positions the Ethereum network to eventually become the world’s largest ZK application. To support the transition, the network will define real-time proving as a technical and hardware standard that zkVM teams should aim for.
The EF is pushing zkVM teams to follow specific goals to ensure that the technology is fast, secure and can be run from home. More specifically, the EF wants zkVMs to create proofs in under 10 seconds, be secure and work on hardware costing less than $100,000 and use less than 10 kilowatts of electricity.
This would allow everyday people to help secure the network, protecting Ethereum against censorship and central control.
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Ethereum’s ZK rollout will be gradual
Gold said the change will be gradual, with optional ZK clients running alongside current validator setups. However, as ZK clients prove their reliability and performance, the network will shift to requiring proof verification instead of re-execution.
While the timeline seems ambitious, the EF said the momentum in ZK research and open-source developments makes it achievable. The foundation urged zkVM teams to work toward real-time home proving.
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