Union explained: ZK-based IBC interop, CometBLS and the Galois prover
Quote202 words20 likes
Breaks down Union's interop stack: IBC-compatible, CometBLS consensus verification via BLS and MiMC, Galois ZK prover (about 7 seconds on consumer CPUs), the Voyager relayer and conditional light clients for Ethereum L2s. Security rests on a 1/3 honest validator assumption rather than multisigs.
Key claims
Galois produces consensus proofs in about 7 seconds on 5GB RAM CPU hardware
Security assumption is 1/3 honest validators, stronger than multisig or MPC bridges
Why is @union_build a winner?
TL;DR ↓
- Fully IBC-compatible interoperability protocol seamlessly interconnecting a fragmented landscape of architecturally heterogenous chains.
- Advanced multi-channel structure enabling both direct and recursive multi-hop connections, simplifying complex cross-chain messaging and apps.
- CometBLS enhances Tendermint for efficient, scalable consensus verification via BLS signatures and MiMC hashing, greatly reducing ZK proof complexity and costs.
- Epoch-based validator rotation minimizes unnecessary consensus proof updates, significantly reducing relayer overhead.
- Galois, a decentralized ZK proving system, delivers fast (~7 sec) and cost-efficient consensus proofs compatible with consumer-grade hardware (5GB RAM, CPU-based).
- Voyager relayer leverages transactional FSM-based state management (PostgreSQL-backed), ensuring rapid startup, parallel execution, and guaranteed packet integrity.
- Implements conditional IBC light clients uniquely supporting Ethereum L2 rollups, tracking both L2 state and L1 settlement conditions, and is widely integrated across various ecosystems.
- Consensus verification security model (1/3 honest validator assumption) far surpasses multisig and MPC-based bridges, eliminating centralization risks.
- Robust against common bridge vulnerabilities like chain reorgs, censorship, and downtime through decentralized proofing and strict IBC standard adherence.
- Roadmap includes stuff like Verkle tree integration, aggregated ZK proof mechanisms, and formal verification efforts, further enhancing scalability and security.
Bullish on gud tech.
QUOTING @zerokn0wledge_
Interoperability remains a key issue within our increasingly fragmented web3 landscape. While infra has significantly improved in the past 2 years, we still lack a truly permissionless and trust-minimized interop layer with an almost instant UX. ZK enables it. @union_build is
Interoperability remains a key issue within our increasingly fragmented web3 landscape. While infra has significantly improved in the past 2 years, we still lack a truly permissionless and trust-minimized interop layer with an almost instant UX. ZK enables it. @union_build is