Ethereum is undergoing ZK transformation, and ZK provers require hardware acceleration. The economic model of Ethereum may eventually evolve into a coexistence of PoS and PoW, forming a new 'hybrid consensus' model. (Background: Ethereum Foundation Researcher: The golden age of Solana is over! Two major advantages will be surpassed by ETH L2) (Additional context: Ethereum bull run started? ETH soared 13%, the top ten tokens are the strongest, ENS, Puffer... ecosystem tokens surged by 50%) Web3Caff founder Gootor presented a very important viewpoint, and here are some further thoughts: Ethereum is undergoing ZK transformation, and ZK provers require hardware acceleration, much like Bitcoin mining which has hardware dependencies, thus ZK mining may become a new type of PoW. The economic model of Ethereum may eventually evolve into a coexistence of PoS and PoW, forming a new 'hybrid consensus' model. Next, let’s specifically look at the underlying logic of the above assumptions. 1. Ethereum is undergoing ZK transformation. The basic principle of ZK (Zero-Knowledge Proof) is: one party can prove to another party that a statement is true without providing any additional information. This is a very promising technology. ZK technology is currently mainly applied to scalability in the blockchain field. Vitalik Buterin has been strongly promoting ZK technology, and due to his willingness and inclination, the Ethereum Foundation has also invested in various ZK projects. However, the cycle of ZK projects as an infrastructure layer is relatively long, so what we ordinary users can directly perceive at present are various ZK Rollups, namely ZK series Ethereum Layer 2 solutions. Typical representatives include zkSync, Starknet, Polygon zkEVM, Scroll, Linea, etc. These are integrating ZK technology into Ethereum's execution layer. Ethereum itself is also gradually transforming towards ZK. ZK transformation of the consensus layer (e.g., Beam Chain proposal): By ZK-ing the verification process of consensus operations, the consensus process can be simplified and accelerated. ZK transformation of the data layer: Only storing proofs without storing all transaction data can significantly reduce on-chain storage requirements. Through these methods, Ethereum can significantly improve its network performance, including transaction processing speed, cost, and privacy protection, while maintaining its decentralization and security. The introduction of ZK technology is seen as part of Ethereum's long-term expansion strategy to cope with higher user demand and application complexity. 2. Why does ZK need to combine with hardware? The aforementioned mentions many advantages of ZK, but the biggest obstacle currently facing ZK is the performance issue of generating ZKP (Zero-Knowledge Proofs). The operational mechanism of ZK is to enable the verifier to merge multiple transactions into a single, concise proof, which is then submitted to the mainnet, ultimately achieving scalability of the mainnet. However, ZK also has limitations, as the process of generating proofs is very resource-intensive in terms of time and effort. Due to the need for many complex mathematical operations, such as exponentiation, reciprocal calculations, and bilinear pairing calculations, the establishment of proofs usually slows down. Simply relying on software optimization cannot further enhance performance, thus hardware integration is required. By using dedicated hardware for acceleration, the proof generation speed can be improved from hours to seconds, which would be a significant enhancement. Therefore, ZK has hardware dependencies and requires specialized chips. As the application of ZKP technology in fields such as privacy computing and blockchain scalability gradually increases, the speed and efficiency of ZKP generation have become bottlenecks, and the market demand for hardware is also increasing. 3. How can PoS and ZK mining be combined? If ZK hardware acceleration is adopted, hardware mining can be achieved, leading to a new economic model. What is ZK mining? Traditional PoW (Proof of Work) mining relies on solving complex mathematical problems, while ZK hardware mining focuses on the ability to quickly generate ZKP. Similar to PoW mining, participants can compete on the speed and efficiency of generating ZKP, with the first participant to generate an effective proof receiving rewards. How specifically can PoS and ZK be combined? In a PoS system, validators (i.e., stakers) are responsible for verifying transactions and proposing new blocks. ZK proofs can be used to prove the correctness of a block or a series of transactions, enhancing security and lowering verification costs. Validators can generate ZKP as additional proof of their work while fulfilling their PoS responsibilities. Validators who successfully generate and submit valid ZKP can receive additional rewards beyond the existing block rewards. This can be in the form of ETH or some form of reward within the network (such as a specific token or a portion of gas fees). Mainnet block rewards can be divided into two parts, forming a layered reward system: one part of the rewards is used for traditional PoS validation, and the other part is distributed based on nodes' contributions to ZK proof generation. Thus, it can be seen that ZK can serve as an enhancement to PoS validation, while ZK mining can serve as an expansion of PoS staking. Stakers can earn additional rewards by participating in ZK-related work, aside from staking ETH for PoS rewards. For instance, stakers can run ZK proof generation nodes, providing computational resources to support the application of ZK technology. However, this is only one possibility; integrating ZK technology into Ethereum's existing PoS mechanism would require modification or extension of the current PoS protocol to accommodate the role of ZK proofs. Additionally, a fair incentive model must be designed to ensure that it neither undermines the incentive effects of PoS nor hinders the application of ZK technology. 4. Will ZK mining introduce new positive externalities? One of the most criticized points after Ethereum transitioned from PoW to PoS is that no externalities have been introduced into this 'closed' economic system. PoW has externalities, requiring energy and hardware, thereby extending the economic activities of the blockchain beyond the blockchain itself, impacting the real world. In a PoS system, the eligibility to validate blocks is primarily based on the number of tokens held (i.e., staking), and economic activities are more focused on staking and internal network transactions, unlike PoW, which involves extensive mining production, electricity markets, and other external industries. ZK-accelerated hardware, like PoW mining machines, also requires specialized hardware, but the issue of 'inefficient power consumption' will be reduced, as PoW involves solving mathematical problems to compete for block rights, while ZK mining generates valid proofs to verify transactions without requiring different nodes to perform redundant and ineffective labor. 5. AI and ZK computing power sharing. Further, a ZK computing power market may emerge, and even AI computing power and ZK computing power could be shared. There may be integrated platforms in the market that provide comprehensive computing services to support the computational needs of AI and ZK tasks. Users could process high-performance computing AI tasks and tasks requiring ZK proof generation on the same platform. On the protocol level, integration can also occur: establishing smart contracts or protocols so that AI computing power providers can participate in the generation of ZK proofs or utilize ZK technology to verify the results of AI computations. Computing power can also be...

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