Thread by @middlecurver

1/ A thread about zero-knowledge Ethereum Virtual Machines (#zkEVMs) - a technology that allows for smart contract execution that is compatible with zero-knowledge proof computation.

2/ ZkEVMs are part of zero-knowledge rollups, Ethereum layer 2 scaling solutions that improve throughput by transferring computation and state storage off-chain.
These rollups submit transaction data to Ethereum along with zk proofs that verify the validity of off-chain txs.

3/ Early ZK-rollups were limited to simple token swaps and payments, but with the introduction of EVM-compatible zkEVMs, ZK-rollups are now starting to support Ethereum dApps.

4/ There are currently several different types of zkEVMs in development, each with their own unique approach to combining EVM execution with zero-knowledge proof computation.

In his blog, @VitalikButerin breaks those down into 5 categories:

5/
1 - fully Ethereum-equivalent
2 - fully EVM-equivalent
2.5 - EVM-equivalent, except for gas costs
3 - almost EVM-equivalent
4 - high-level-language equivalent

Read here:
vitalik.ca/general/2022/0…

6/ The tradeoff here is balancing between EVM-compatibility and prover time (the amount of time and resources required to generate zero-knowledge proofs).

Some examples of such projects include @zksync, @StarkNetEco, @aztecnetwork, @0xPolygon's zkEVM and @loopringorg.

7/ Building a fully functional zkEVM will encourage the development of these EVM-compatible ZK-rollup projects, which offer many benefits such as secure scalability, cheaper costs, faster finality and capital efficiency, and network effects.

8/ Some estimates suggest that ZK-rollups can process ~2000 transactions per second without incurring Ethereum's high fees. This technology is crucial for the future of blockchain and crypto.