Celebrating Innovation: Highlights from our London ZK Meetup

Led by Ed Frost, our Managing Recruitment Consultant specialising in Zero-Knowledge Proofs (ZKP), we recently hosted a Meetup at ONA. Studios in London. Shoreditch, known for its vibrant tech scene and creative energy, provided the perfect setting for this event, which brought together 30 cryptography and privacy enthusiasts to explore the latest advancements in ZKP and discuss its future possibilities.

The evening featured an impressive lineup of speakers, each offering a unique take on ZKP and their potential applications. The mix of technical deep dives and broader discussions ensured that there was something for everyone. But don’t worry if you couldn’t make it. We’ve summarised all the key takeaways for you below! Before we dive in you might be asking yourself what ZKP actually means.

Zero-Knowledge Proof (ZKP) is a cryptographic technique that allows one party to prove to another that a statement is true without revealing any additional information beyond the validity of the statement itself. This powerful concept is transforming the landscape of privacy and security in digital interactions, offering applications that range from secure authentication methods to privacy-preserving decentralized applications.

Kitty Horlick: ZK Social Apps and Privacy at Scale

Kitty Horlick, Director at Rarimo/Rarilabs, kicked off the event with her talk on "ZK Social Apps." She provided an overview of Rarimo's groundbreaking work in developing ZK-based social graph platforms that allow users to privately store identities, interactions, and histories. She emphasised how their technology addresses the growing concern for privacy in the digital age, particularly in social platforms.

One of the highlights of Kitty’s talk was the introduction of Rarimo's "Freedom Tool" app. Designed to enable anonymous and secure voting using ZKP, the app verifies voter eligibility without revealing personal information, a crucial feature that has already been utilised by Iran and Russian opposition groups to challenge Putin's regime.

Kitty also discussed the challenges of scaling privacy in social apps and how Rarimo’s technology aims to provide private and verifiable user experiences without compromising on utility or social capital. She gave a sneak peek into their upcoming "RariMe" app, which is now live, and will enable users to store histories of their activities and unlock new privacy-preserving social apps.

Jorik Schellekens: Advancing ZK Proofs on StarkNet

Following Kitty, Jorik Schellekens, Co-CTO of Nethermind, presented his work on integrating ZK proofs into the StarkNet ecosystem, a ZK-based rollup on Ethereum. His talk, titled "Unlocking ZK Proofs on StarkNet: The Verifying Everything Project," provided deep insights into the technical advancements and challenges in this space.

Jorik explained that StarkNet, built on the Cairo programming language, is becoming an increasingly attractive settlement layer for ZK proofs due to key improvements in its STARK proof system and the ability to shard Cairo computations. These enhancements allow for more efficient processing and verification of ZK proofs, making StarkNet a powerful platform for scaling blockchain applications.

He also discussed the challenges faced by aggregation layers that aim to serve as the "settlement layer" for ZK proofs. These layers often struggle with building their own economic security, a critical component for their long-term viability. To address these challenges, Jorik's "Verify Everything" project is focused on implementing verifiers for various ZK proof systems within Cairo, making it easier to settle proofs on StarkNet.

Alberto Centelles: Parallelising ZK VMs for Enhanced Performance

Alberto Centelles, a cryptography researcher at Anoma, provided a fascinating presentation on the future of zero-knowledge virtual machines (ZK VMs). His talk focused on novel techniques to parallelise ZK VMs, aiming to improve the performance of proof generation, which is critical for the scalability and efficiency of zero-knowledge proofs.

Alberto highlighted several advantages of using ZK VMs, including a more intuitive developer experience, easier auditing processes, and smaller circuit sizes compared to compiling directly to circuits. These benefits make ZK VMs an attractive option for developers working with ZK proofs.

He explored various parallelisation techniques, such as incrementally verifiable computations, proof-carrying data, and data parallel circuits. These methods can significantly address the current limitations in ZK VM implementations, particularly the slow prover time and memory constraints associated with FRI-based polynomial commitment schemes. Alberto provided real-world examples of projects like Nexus and Ceno, which are leveraging these parallelisation techniques to optimise ZK VM performance.

The key takeaway from Alberto’s talk was that parallelising ZK VMs is a crucial area of research for improving the overall efficiency and scalability of zero-knowledge proofs. His insights underscored the importance of continued innovation in this space to meet the growing demands of privacy-preserving technologies.

Fireside Chat: Building Better DApps with ZK and the Midnight Blockchain

The evening concluded with an engaging fireside chat featuring Mauricio Magaldi and Marta Szluinska from Midnight @IOG. The discussion centered around "Building Better DApps with ZK" and the role of privacy in decentralised application development.

Midnight is a data protection blockchain that leverages zero-knowledge proofs to allow businesses to benefit from blockchain programmability while maintaining privacy. As a partner chain to Cardano, Midnight inherits its validator security and is currently in the public DevNet phase, positioning itself as a key player in bringing confidentiality to public blockchains.

During the chat, Mauricio and Marta shared their experiences in the fast-paced crypto industry, highlighting the excitement and challenges of building a blockchain company from scratch. They emphasised their passion for cutting-edge technology and the dynamic environment of the industry.

For those interested in getting involved with Midnight, the speakers recommended exploring the Midnight documentation website, joining their Discord channel, and following the company’s social media accounts for updates and new initiatives like hackathons. They also provided career advice, particularly for women looking to enter the crypto and blockchain industries. They stressed the importance of recognising opportunities, developing relevant skills, building a strong network, and staying resilient in the face of challenges.

Looking Forward: The Promise of ZKPs

As the evening came to a close, there was an undeniable sense of excitement about the future of ZKP. The presentations and conversations had painted a vivid picture of the incredible potential of this technology—from improving privacy and security in digital interactions to enabling innovative decentralized applications.

The London ZK Meetup wasn’t just about gathering experts; it was a celebration of the innovative spirit driving the development of ZKP. It highlighted the importance of community and collaboration in advancing this technology. For those who attended, it was an invaluable opportunity to learn, connect, and contribute to the ongoing conversation around zero-knowledge proof.

As we look to the future, it’s clear that the journey of ZKP is only just beginning. With events like the London ZK Meetup bringing together the best and brightest in the field, the future looks incredibly promising. Whether you’re a seasoned professional or just starting out, there’s never been a better time to get involved and explore the transformative potential of zero-knowledge proof.

We can’t wait to see what’s next and look forward to welcoming you to the next London ZK Meetup!