Week 5 Update

In week 5, I conducted research on the zkrollups' system architecture, focusing in particular on the methods for selecting provers and sequencers, the incentives associated with them, and the measures taken to address potential risks such as sequencer or prover failures. I also examined how they ensure resistance to censorship, among other concerns.

My research focused on Aztec and Starknet. Notably, both rollups are currently working with centralized operators and their documentation does not provide clear details about their incentive structures. As the provers are centralized, they are likely to be paid outside the protocol. Despite this centralized approach, both projects have goals to move towards decentralization in the foreseeable future.

My research presentations of Aztec and Starknet. 🌈🌟

Although Aztec is not currently active, it has an impressive research team working diligently to reinvent the design mechanism of their protocols. In a recent initiative, Aztec organized a competition to identify the most efficient decentralized sequencer selection mechanism. Out of several proposals, B52 and Fernet emerged as the top contenders. The general opinion is that Aztec is inclined to integrate the Fernet mechanism and is currently looking for a suitable prover selection method.

It is exciting that our goals intersect in this way with a pioneering research team. As our research into prover mechanisms and incentives progresses, I am enthusiastic about the possibilities of sharing our discoveries with them or developing a dialog to get their valuable insights. 🔮

I've also initiated the drafting of a blog post centered on an introduction to cryptoeconomics. My aim is to delve deeper into the foundational logic and motivations underlying mechanism design.📜🔍