ZK-EVM: The Future of Ethereum L2s?

It's almost universally agreed within the cryptosphere that the Ethereum blockchain is good – but not perfect.

Ethereum (ETH) co-founder Vitalik Buterin has expressed support for the idea of installing an “enshrined ZK-EVM” upgrade for the blockchain.

In a recent statement, Buterin highlighted the challenges posed by the fragmentation of multiple Layer-2 (L2) blockchains operating in isolation.

“Having a large number of L2s that each has its own community and its own strong points is great, but we also want to make sure that there is some level of interoperability between them,” he said.

To address this issue, Buterin suggested adding a pre-state root and post-state root to each block that enters the consensus layer.

“This proof doesn’t give away any extra information about the transactions themselves, just that they are correct,” he explained.

“Also, there could be an option to use multiple such proofs for even greater security.”

However, Buterin noted that a single rule change could create challenges for hundreds of L2 developers and programmers on the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) when it comes to compatibility, upgradability and adaptability within their existing systems.

“An Ethereum with enshrined ZK-EVM is probably not right around the corner,” he added.

For the time being, Buterin believes that interoperable L2 ecosystems are the solution.

“To get crypto-assets from one L2 to another quickly and cheaply, without having to make a stop on the Ethereum L1, we need a way for the L2s to talk to each other,” he said.

“Fortunately, a few L2 ecosystems are focused on delivering just that, most notably ZKsync’s ZK Stack and Polygon’s CDK.”

Buterin added that when a new blockchain network is deployed using one of these frameworks, it shares a common bridge to Ethereum with the other chains that leverage the same framework.

“Additionally, as all the chains that use the same framework also share a common proof system, it should be possible to send cross-chain messages in an increasingly cheap and fast way, while still relying on the security of the underlying Ethereum L1.”