Written by: Yue Xiaoyu
Gootor, the founder of Web3Caff, presented a very important viewpoint, sharing further thoughts here:
Ethereum is undergoing ZK transformation, and ZK provers require hardware acceleration, similar to how Bitcoin mining has hardware dependencies, making ZK mining potentially a new form 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 take a closer look at the underlying logic of the aforementioned ideas.
1. Ethereum is undergoing ZK transformation
The basic principle of ZK (zero-knowledge proof) is: one party can prove to another that a statement is true without providing any additional information.
This is a very promising technology.
ZK technology is currently mainly applied to scaling 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 for the infrastructure layer of ZK projects is relatively long, so what ordinary users can currently directly perceive are various ZK Rollups, namely Ethereum Layer 2 solutions of the ZK series.
Typical representatives include zkSync, Starknet, Polygon zkEVM, Scroll, Linea, etc.
These are all about integrating ZK technology into the execution layer of Ethereum.
Moreover, Ethereum itself is gradually undergoing ZK transformation.
Consensus layer ZK transformation (e.g., Beam Chain proposal): by ZK transforming the verification process of consensus operations, the consensus process can be simplified and accelerated.
ZK transformation of the data layer: storing only proofs without storing all transaction data can significantly reduce on-chain storage requirements.
Through these methods, Ethereum can significantly enhance its network performance, including transaction processing speed, costs, 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 address higher user demand and application complexity.
2. Why does ZK need to be combined with hardware?
The various advantages of ZK mentioned above, but the biggest obstacle currently faced by ZK is the performance issue of generating ZKPs (Zero-Knowledge Proofs).
The operational mechanism of ZK involves allowing validators to merge multiple transactions into a single, concise proof, which is then submitted to the mainnet, ultimately achieving scalability for the mainnet.
However, ZK also has limitations, as the process of generating proofs is resource-intensive in terms of time and energy.
Due to the need for many complex mathematical computations, such as power calculations, inverse calculations, and bilinear pairing computations, the creation of proofs typically slows down.
Simply relying on software optimization cannot further enhance performance; therefore, it requires the combination of hardware. By using dedicated hardware for acceleration, the proof generation speed can be improved from hours to seconds, which will be a significant improvement.
Therefore, ZK has hardware dependencies and requires dedicated chips.
As the application of ZKP technology in privacy computing, blockchain scaling, and other fields gradually increases, the speed and efficiency of generating ZKPs have become bottlenecks, and the market demand for hardware is also becoming increasingly strong.
3. How do PoS and ZK mining combine?
If ZK hardware acceleration is adopted, hardware mining can be realized, 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 is about the ability to rapidly generate ZKPs.
Similar to PoW mining, participants can compete for the speed and efficiency of generating ZKPs, with the first participant to generate a valid proof receiving a reward.
How exactly do PoS and ZK combine?
In a PoS system, validators (i.e., stakers) are responsible for validating 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 reducing validation costs.
Validators generate ZKPs as additional proof of their work while performing their PoS duties. Validators who successfully generate and submit valid ZKPs can receive additional rewards beyond existing block rewards.
This can be a form of reward in ETH or some internal form of the network (such as a portion of specific tokens or gas fees).
Mainnet block rewards can be divided into two parts, forming a layered reward system: one part is used for traditional PoS validation, while the other part is distributed based on the nodes' contributions in ZK proof generation.
From this, it can be seen that ZK can enhance PoS validation, while ZK mining can serve as an extension of PoS staking.
Stakers can earn additional rewards through participating in ZK-related work, in addition to staking ETH for PoS rewards. For example, stakers can run ZK proof generation nodes, providing computing resources to support the application of ZK technology.
However, this is just a proposed possibility; integrating the existing PoS mechanism of Ethereum with ZK technology requires modifications or extensions to the current PoS protocol to accommodate the role of ZK proofs.
Moreover, a fair incentive model must be designed to ensure that it neither undermines the incentive effect of PoS nor promotes 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 the lack of externalities introduced into this 'closed' economic system.
PoW has externalities, requiring energy and hardware, thus expanding the economic activities of the blockchain to outside the blockchain, affecting the real world.
In a PoS system, the qualification for validating blocks is primarily based on the number of tokens held (i.e., staking), with economic activities more concentrated on staking and transactions within the network, rather than involving extensive mining machine production, electricity markets, and other external industries as in PoW.
ZK accelerated hardware, like PoW mining machines, requires dedicated hardware; however, 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 for transaction validation without requiring different nodes to perform repetitive invalid labor.
5. AI and ZK share computing power
Further, a ZK computing power market may emerge, and even realize the sharing of AI computing power and ZK computing power.
A comprehensive computing service integrated platform that supports AI and ZK task computing needs may emerge in the market.
Users can process high-performance computing AI tasks and tasks requiring ZK proof generation on the same platform.
Integration can also be done at the protocol level: creating smart contracts or protocols so that AI computing power providers can also participate in ZK proof generation or use ZK technology to verify AI computation results.
Computing power can also be dynamically allocated: computing resources can be dynamically allocated based on task demands. For example, when AI task demand is low, these resources can be used for generating ZK proofs, and vice versa.
6. Leading players in ZK hardware acceleration
Currently, the leading project in ZK hardware acceleration is Cysic.
Cysic focuses on designing and producing dedicated integrated circuits (ASICs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), and GPU acceleration solutions to speed up the ZKP generation process.
Cysic has designed two hardware products:
ZK Air: A lightweight ZK device, close in size to a laptop power adapter, with computing power equivalent to 10 RTX 4090 GPUs, suitable for individual users.
ZK Pro: A more powerful device, with performance equivalent to 50 RTX 4090 GPUs, designed for large ZK projects such as zkRollup and zkML.
In addition to hardware, Cysic also provides a set of CUDA libraries that support various ZKP systems such as Plonky2, Gnark, Halo2, RapidSnark, etc. These libraries can significantly improve performance, boosting it by at least 50% compared to open-source frameworks.
At the same time, Cysic has an ecosystem, Cysic Network, primarily designed to integrate and manage community computing resources, connecting ZK project parties, computing power providers, and community validators to form a reliable computing power network.
Simply put, Cysic Network is a ZK mining pool and SaaS platform.
Currently, Cysic has collaborated with multiple zkRollup projects, demonstrating the practicality and market demand of its products.
In addition to Cysic, there is another very distinctive project to mention: Scroll.
Unexpectedly, the 'widely criticized' and 'notorious' Scroll is performing very well in ZK hardware acceleration.
Compared to other ZK Rollup projects, Scroll takes a unique approach by starting with hardware, developing dedicated ZK acceleration hardware GUP, creating its own competitive barrier, which is Scroll's greatest differentiation competitive advantage.
Just looking at this point, Scroll is indeed a very hardcore project.
However, Scroll and Cysic are not positioned the same: for Scroll, hardware acceleration is part of its overall Layer 2 solution; whereas Cysic is dedicated to providing hardware acceleration services for the entire ZKP ecosystem.
7. Conclusion
Finally, let's summarize the content of this article:
Ethereum is undergoing ZK transformation: By introducing zero-knowledge proof (ZK) technology for scaling and enhancing privacy, it has already applied ZK technology in both consensus and data layers to improve network performance.
ZK requires hardware acceleration: Since generating zero-knowledge proofs consumes a large amount of computational resources, hardware acceleration (such as ASIC, FPGA) is seen as a necessary means to improve efficiency.
The combination of PoS and ZK mining: proposes a new economic model, treating ZK mining as an extension of PoS, where stakers earn additional rewards by providing ZK computing power, forming a coexistence model of PoS and PoW.
ZK mining introduces new positive externalities: Compared to PoW, ZK mining may reduce inefficient energy consumption, but still requires dedicated hardware, bringing incentives for hardware production and technological innovation.
AI and ZK computing power sharing: AI and ZK computing tasks may share hardware resources, forming a comprehensive computing service market.
Market-leading projects: Cysic and Scroll are leaders in the field of ZK hardware acceleration, with the former focusing on providing hardware for the ZK ecosystem, and the latter as part of a Layer 2 solution.
Finally, the ZK hardware acceleration track has already begun to take shape. With Ethereum's further ZK transformation, ZK hardware acceleration will become more important and may even reverse change Ethereum's economic model, making it worth our continued attention to this track.
