StarkWare, OP_CAT and STARKs as the path to Bitcoin L2s
Quote457 words
Explains why StarkWare funds OP_CAT research: it is the one covenant opcode that enables Merkle tree verification needed for STARK-based validity rollups on Bitcoin. Adds that STARKs are transparent and post-quantum secure, and could bring privacy to Bitcoin L2s.
Key claims
StarkWare launching a $1M fund for OP_CAT research
Starknet aims to settle on Ethereum and Bitcoin simultaneously
STARKs need no trusted setup and are post-quantum secure
L2s will be a game-changer for Bitcoin and give rise to a multi-billion $$$ ecosystem.
Among the leaders in the space is @StarkWareLtd
@Starknet itself will become a decentralized L2 that simultaneously and synchronously settles on both Ethereum & Bitcoin.
饾棫饾棢饾棗饾棩 饾椉饾椈 饾椀饾椉饾槃 & 饾槃饾椀饾槅馃憞
@Starknet will become a single layer that settles on both chains at once.
To get there and enable the vision of scalable and decentralized L2s on Bitcoin, @StarkWareLtd is launching a $1 million fund that will award grants to Bitcoin researchers & devs researching OP_CAT and its impact on Bitcoin.
@StarkwareLtd thereby expresses public support for OP_CAT, a tech feature that makes trustless rollups possible on Bitcoin by enabling recursive covenants that can manage & update their state autonomously.
馃 饾棯饾椀饾槅 饾棦饾棧_饾棖饾棓饾棫?
In the context of Bitcoin-based validity rollups, STARKs could play a pivotal role. They require verifying chains of hashes, and little else.
The primary verification loop consists of simple algebraic operations (addition & multiplication modulo a small prime number) and verifying that entries pre-committed via Merkle trees are opened correctly.
OP_CAT uniquely enables creating & opening entries in Merkle trees within Bitcoin Script and hashing them.
While other covenant-enabling op codes may be more powerful, OP_CAT is the only one currently under debate that enables this Merkle tree verification, which is crucial to support on-chain state validation (proof verification).
馃 饾棯饾椀饾槅 饾棪饾棫饾棓饾棩饾棡饾榾?
STARKs are cryptographic proofs that offer scale, are battle-tested and secure, don't require a trusted setup, no exotic crypto primitives, and are even post-quantum secure.
The new and highly efficient STARK prover-verifier, called "Stwo", could be the perfect fit for the computationally limited Bitcoin鈥檚 stack.
Additionally, aside the scalability benefits arising from verifiable computation, STARKs bear a massive potential to deliver privacy.
While well understood, the Zero Knowledgeside of the technology is yet to be unpacked and translated into practical solutions.
Integrating private L2s into the Bitcoin ecosystem, utilizing technologies like @Zcash, MimbleWimble, or Noir, could significantly enhance privacy for users transacting on these rollups.
馃 饾棖饾椉饾椈饾棸饾椆饾槀饾榾饾椂饾椉饾椈
Having an Ethereum L2 ecosystem worth billions like @Starknet integrating Bitcoin as a settlement layer is a huge leap for the entire Bitcoin ecosystem.
OP_CAT as an enabler for innovation around trustless rollups on top of Bitcoin would be an even bigger catalyst.
Undoubtedly, STARKs as a technology bear enormous potential to enable us to build programmable execution layers on top of Bitcoin (with added privacy features), unlocking the idle liquidity that sits in the largest crypto-asset within novel DeFi ecosystems.
@StarkWareLtd is once again in a pioneering role here and with the support for OP_CAT research, making another important contribution to the advancement of ZK tech adoption throughout the Web3 space.
DYOR anon, (STARK-powered) Bitcoin L2 season is coming. 馃煚馃惡
QUOTING @StarkWareLtd
Bitcoin's biggest challenge is scalability. StarkWare has a vision to change that. The concept of STARK scaling for blockchains was first introduced by @EliBenSasson at a Bitcoin conference in early 2013. It's now time to scale Bitcoin with ZK-STARK, making it more accessible t
Bitcoin's biggest challenge is scalability. StarkWare has a vision to change that. The concept of STARK scaling for blockchains was first introduced by @EliBenSasson at a Bitcoin conference in early 2013. It's now time to scale Bitcoin with ZK-STARK, making it more accessible t
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