Original author: PAUL VERADITTAKIT
Source: TechFlow Deep Tide
August 26 to September 1 is Stanford Blockchain Week, a week-long series of conferences, summits, and events. In addition to the main academic conference, there are many other summits this year, including the Blockchain Application Stanford Summit (BASS) by the Stanford Blockchain Club, the Starknet Summit in San Francisco, and academic seminars focusing on consensus, MEV, and DAO, as well as numerous other related activities. In this article, we will explore three key trends of this week and what they mean for the industry as a whole.
Trend 1: Optimization of Zero-Knowledge Proofs in Theory and Practice
Unsurprisingly, a large part of the conference is focused on zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs). The optimization of existing ZKP solutions is a core theme of SBC itself, with one session discussing breakthroughs in efficient folding schemes such as HyperNova and Protostar. In addition to these, there were other academic presentations focusing on applying zkSNARKs to more efficient batch Merkle proofs and formal verification of ZK circuits.
Moreover, the interest in driving ZKP research is not limited to the academic community at Stanford alone. During this week, several startups from the Stanford Blockchain Accelerator showcased new applications of zero-knowledge proofs in various domains. For example, Nexus Labs and Modulus Labs utilized ZKPs in verifiable computations, Ironmill and Succinct proposed use cases in new development tools and infrastructure, and Nocturne and Hinkal demonstrated applications of private transactions.
The ZKP ecosystem is gradually specializing, with different companies focusing on specific parts of the ZK process, whether it's connecting applications to provers, providing ZK proofs for specific verticals (such as Modulus' artificial intelligence), or offering other enhanced integration tools. This specialization may indicate that the industry is evolving into a modular and complex process, highlighting the increasing maturity of ZKP as a technology. Of course, all of this is happening at a steady pace of academic breakthroughs (such as the new folding schemes proposed at SBC), which opens up new use cases for the technology and creates a symbiotic relationship between ZKP theory and practice.
Trend 2: Achieving "Plug and Play" Composability through Modularity
In the past few months, modularity has become a hot topic and a growing trend, with different companies focusing on specific tasks in the blockchain technology stack, such as sorting, execution, data availability, etc., rather than having one large blockchain responsible for everything. However, modularity itself is not necessarily the end goal; instead, the goal is to create a more composable technology stack, a "plug-and-play" design space that allows developers to experiment and fine-tune blockchain stacks for any set of requirements.
This "plug-and-play" spirit was exemplified in Professor Ed Felton's talk on Stylus for Arbitrum on BASS, which aims to unify the execution environments for EVM and WASM code, enabling smooth interaction between smart contracts and WASM code. This allows for the creation of WASM "libraries" that EVM contracts can call functions from, resulting in a more composable development experience. Other interesting developments in improving composability through modularity include Chainlink's CCIP, which attempts to create industry-defined interoperability standards, and Celestia's speech on the history and future of modular blockchains.
It is worth noting that many of the projects driving this trend at Stanford are larger and more mature companies (such as Arbitrum, Chainlink, Celestia, Starkware) that are already industry leaders. While there are also smaller companies like Caldera, a Stanford startup, dedicating themselves to this trend, composability seems to be more of a focus for projects seeking to establish or consolidate ecosystem leadership and attract developers to use their technology stack. For the entire blockchain industry, this is a positive move as emphasizing composability through a "plug-and-play" approach lowers the barrier of entry for new developers and allows for more customizable technology stacks to be applicable to a wider range of use cases.
Trend 3: Renewed Focus on the Bitcoin Developer Ecosystem
The third interesting trend at the Stanford Blockchain Conference is the renewed focus on the development and future of the world's oldest blockchain, Bitcoin. During BASS, there was dedicated emphasis on the Bitcoin ecosystem, both from a developer and technical perspective, as well as a cultural one. In addition to Professor David Tse's talk on the Babylon Bitcoin Staking Protocol, there were multiple panel discussions featuring speakers from Ordinals, Taproot Wizards, Bitcoin Startup Labs, Bitcoin Magazine, etc., discussing the innovative future of the Bitcoin ecosystem, particularly post-Ordinals.
One of the most interesting and unique perspectives is the defense of Bitcoin art (such as Raresats) by Erin Redwing, Chief Operating Officer of Ordinals. She believes that if Bitcoin is "digital gold," then the art engraved on it through Ordinals is equivalent to "digital jewelry." Just as most ordinary people indirectly interact with gold through "art and jewelry," the same applies to Bitcoin. In addition, the cultural and technological changes brought about by Ordinals and other new projects seem to have sparked renewed interest in the Bitcoin ecosystem among many Ethereum developers, bringing the design, token economics, and implementation expertise of Ethereum DApps into Bitcoin, potentially reviving the ancient ecosystem of Bitcoin.
However, it is still too early to assert whether we are in a true "Bitcoin revival." It is well known that Bitcoin is a conservative ecosystem, and its community's attitude towards cultural and technological changes is at most indifferent, or even hostile. However, the potential development of the Bitcoin ecosystem is still worth noting, even if only from the perspective of transaction volume and cultural recognition.
Conclusion
The above three trends regarding the progress of ZK, composability achieved through modularity, and the development of the Bitcoin ecosystem, are far from a comprehensive description of all the research and innovation being conducted at Stanford University. From new research on consensus mechanisms that lay the foundation for future L1 or L2, to transaction and MEV modeling techniques that may enhance analysis tools, to new cryptographic primitives, the Stanford Blockchain Conference demonstrates the diversity and vitality of this industry. Unlike many other industry summits or academic conferences, SBC and its affiliated conferences cleverly synchronize and combine the industry with research, creating a vibrant alliance composed of startups, mature protocols, and academia, all dedicated to advancing the blockchain field and building a better decentralized future.
IOS
Android