The Future of Ethereum: The Possibilities of ZK and New Consensus Mechanisms

Ethereum is undergoing a significant transition, gradually aligning itself with zero-knowledge proof (ZK) technology. This shift could not only enhance performance but also reshape Ethereum's economic model.

The ZK Transition of Ethereum

Ethereum is introducing ZK technology on multiple levels:

1. Execution Layer: Multiple ZK Rollup solutions have been deployed, such as zkSync, Starknet, etc.
2. Consensus Layer: Proposals such as Beam Chain aim to simplify and accelerate the consensus process through ZK technology.
3. Data Layer: Significantly reduces on-chain storage requirements by storing only proofs instead of all transaction data.

These changes are expected to significantly enhance network performance, transaction processing speed, and privacy protection while maintaining decentralization and security.

Hardware Dependency of ZK Technology

Although ZK technology has a promising future, its main challenge lies in the performance bottleneck of generating zero-knowledge proofs (ZKP). The proof creation process is very time-consuming due to the involvement of complex mathematical operations, such as exponentiation and bilinear pairing calculations.

To break through this bottleneck, specialized hardware acceleration has become an inevitable choice. By using custom chips, the ZKP generation speed is expected to be improved from hours to seconds, which will be a revolutionary advancement.

New Economic Model: The Combination of PoS and ZK Mining

With the development of ZK hardware acceleration, a new economic model may emerge—ZK mining. In this model, participants compete to generate ZKPs in terms of speed and efficiency, and the first participant to generate a valid proof receives a reward.

This model can be integrated with the existing PoS mechanism:

• Validators generate ZKP as additional proof while performing PoS duties.
• Block rewards may be divided into two parts: one part for traditional PoS validation and the other part for contribution distribution based on ZK proofs.
• Stakers can run ZK proof generation nodes to earn additional rewards by providing computing resources.

This hybrid model may form a new "hybrid consensus" system that combines the energy efficiency of PoS and the computational value of ZK.

Externalities of ZK Mining

Compared to pure PoS, ZK mining may reintroduce some positive externalities. Although it requires specialized hardware, unlike the "invalid power consumption" problem of PoW, the proofs generated by ZK mining are directly used to verify transactions, avoiding repetitive invalid labor.

This model may stimulate hardware innovation and production while maintaining energy efficiency, bringing a broader impact to the blockchain economy.

AI and ZK Computing Power Sharing

In the future, comprehensive computing service platforms that support AI and ZK tasks may emerge. These platforms can dynamically allocate computing power resources based on demand, utilizing resources for generating ZK proofs when the demand for AI tasks is low, and vice versa.

This integration may give rise to new protocols and smart contracts, allowing AI computing power providers to participate in ZK proof generation or utilize ZK technology to verify AI computation results.

Market Leader in ZK Hardware Acceleration

In the field of ZK hardware acceleration, Cysic and Scroll are two projects worth paying attention to:

Cysic focuses on the design and production of Application-Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), Field-Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), and GPU-accelerated solutions. They have launched two hardware products, ZK Air and ZK Pro, aimed at individual users and large ZK projects, respectively.

Scroll incorporates ZK hardware acceleration as part of its Layer 2 solution, forming a unique competitive advantage by developing dedicated ZK acceleration hardware called GUP.

Conclusion

As Ethereum transitions to ZK technology, the importance of ZK hardware acceleration is becoming increasingly prominent. This trend not only has the potential to enhance network performance but may also reshape Ethereum's economic model, forming a hybrid consensus mechanism with both PoS and new types of PoW. At the same time, the potential integration of ZK with AI computing power opens up new possibilities for the future. This emerging track is worth continuous attention and in-depth research from industry professionals.