Developers at BitcoinOS (BOS) made blockchain history on Tuesday by successfully verifying the first-ever zero-knowledge proof (ZKP) on Bitcoin mainchain.
This milestone opens the door to truly minimized Bitcoin layer 2 rollup systems, offering limitless scalability and functionality for Bitcoin without needing changes to its underlying consensus code.
Bitcoin Now Has ZK Proofs
According to the BitcoinOS team, the final verification of its first ZK proof occurred at Block 853626.
The cryptographic proof allowed them to successfully emulate covenants on-chain – a type of conditional Bitcoin payment developers once thought would require a base-layer soft fork to execute.
Specifically, the team demonstrated that they could create a UTXO controlled by a ZK smart contract, then move the UTXO once the right proof was provided. No single person or federation had control of the funds – only a smart contract.
“This marks the first permissionless upgrade to the Bitcoin system, eliminating the reliance on soft forks and enhancing Bitcoin’s ability to scale and innovate,” said Edan Yago, core contributor to BitcoinOS. “ It opens the door for developers to efficiently build on Bitcoin, fostering true decentralization.”
Unlike existing Layer-2 (L2) solutions that necessitate trust in a centralized entity, BitcoinOS will be a Bitcoin rollup system that requires absolutely minimal trust.
The L2 system ensures decentralization by leveraging a dynamic operator set that verifies bridge transactions between Bitcoin L1 and L2. This approach enhances security against potential threats, including those from nation-state coalitions, through robust cryptographic guarantees.
Uniting All Of Crypto Onto Bitcoin
BitcoinOS aims to unify Bitcoin’s security with the versatility of L2 rollups, potentially attracting the $1.1 trillion altcoin ecosystem back home to Bitcoin. Its modular architecture enables seamless interoperability among various rollups, simplifying asset transfers and enhancing user experience across the network.
“With the introduction of BitcoinOS, Bitcoin is reaching parity with all of the other systems,” Yago told CryptoPotato, referring to its ability to adopt Solana-level scaling and functionality via rollups.
The contributor hypothesized that crypto at large will need to shift from an era of “fragmentation” to “consolidation” as it matures, like other innovative industries have done with time.
Due to its size, network effects, security, and branding, Yago believes Bitcoin will be the network to which all of crypto congregates – especially now that it can achieve the same functionality as its rivals.
“If the last fifteen years were of fragmentation, the next ten or fifteen years are gonna be of consolidation,” he said, “with Bitcoin proving to ultimately be the big winner.”
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