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I spoke with Eli Ben-Sasson | Starknet.io from Starknet about quantum resistance, Ethereum’s shift toward proof-based verification, and Starknet’s potential role in connecting Bitcoin and Ethereum. We also discussed private payments on smartphones and how STARK proofs could help verify AI computations as agents begin handling real transactions👇

28,835 views • 3 days ago •via X (Twitter)

17 Comments

Open World: The Lost Land⚔🛡's profile picture
Open World: The Lost Land⚔🛡3 days ago

@EliBenSasson @Starknet 완전 인정

Brother Sefirot 𒉭🥷🏼's profile picture
Brother Sefirot 𒉭🥷🏼3 days ago

@EliBenSasson @Starknet ZK father

abhinav's profile picture
abhinav3 days ago

@EliBenSasson @Starknet great job covering this sister 🔥🔥

SENSEI's profile picture
SENSEI3 days ago

@EliBenSasson @Starknet Marilyn for best crypto content interviewer >>>>

Jasneet Singh Saini's profile picture
Jasneet Singh Saini3 days ago

@EliBenSasson @Starknet That's so cool!

Wasim's profile picture
Wasim3 days ago

@EliBenSasson @Starknet There is so many content creator but my sis is different🔥🔥

Yara Zai's profile picture
Yara Zai3 days ago

@EliBenSasson @Starknet Hard to argue with that.

Sondra Eddington's profile picture
Sondra Eddington3 days ago

@EliBenSasson @Starknet proof based verification is inevitable atp

shivani's profile picture
shivani3 days ago

@EliBenSasson @Starknet You’ve been 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

laki | Token2049🇸🇬's profile picture
laki | Token2049🇸🇬3 days ago

@EliBenSasson @Starknet you made so many good interviews at token

Big Bev 🐆's profile picture
Big Bev 🐆3 days ago

@EliBenSasson @Starknet Valid

💎 GEM mega MEME 💎's profile picture
💎 GEM mega MEME 💎3 days ago

@EliBenSasson @Starknet Client side proving on mobile is the only real path here. If the phone isn't generating the proof locally, you're just handing transaction data to someone else's server and calling it private. Hardware limits are the only bottleneck.

Hola ⛩️'s profile picture
Hola ⛩️3 days ago

@EliBenSasson @Starknet You're killing it Marilyn

3P's profile picture
3P3 days ago

@EliBenSasson @Starknet When does the Bitcoin bridge launch?

Rashed | Onchain 🐇's profile picture
Rashed | Onchain 🐇3 days ago

@EliBenSasson @Starknet with starknet private payment will be easy or costly?

Akash's profile picture
Akash2 days ago

@EliBenSasson @Starknet see u in bunker.

J I H A D🦄's profile picture
J I H A D🦄3 days ago

@EliBenSasson @Starknet fascinating discussion on the future of blockchain and AI!

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BITCOIN RAILS EPISODE #24: The History of Zero-Knowledge Proofs | with ZK “Godfather” Eli Ben Sasson In 2013, computer science professor Eli Ben-Sasson | Starknet.io presented his research on zero-knowledge proofs at a small Bitcoin conference outside of Standford University. The presentation immediately sparked interest from Bitcoin Core developer Greg Maxwell—leading Eli into over a decade of sustained work advancing ZK-based solutions for blockchain scalability and privacy. Today, zero-knowledge proofs are widely considered some of the most powerful and promising cryptographic primitives for scaling—with their full potential for Bitcoin simmering just beneath the surface of active development. This episode shares Eli’s early discussions of ZKPs for scaling, the use of proofs in privacy-enhancing technologies like Zcash, the explosion of ZKPs for Layer 2s on Ethereum… and his recent return to exploring ZKPs for Bitcoin. As always, you can view this episode on YouTube or Spotify via the linktree in my bio—YouTube link in comments as well. This episode is powered by Best In Slot—the leading API for Ordinals and BRC20 data aggregation and indexing. TIMESTAMPS: 00:51 Eli Ben-Sasson: Godfather of ZKPs 02:15 Revealing Proof Research to Bitcoiners 04:15 Meeting Greg Maxwell; Mike Hearn 06:10 ZCash: Bringing ZK Based Privacy for Crypto 07:05 SNARKs and STARKs Explained 08:10 Would Satoshi Approve of Bitcoin STARKs? 11:41 ZCash Privacy Versus Monero 13:45 When did the ZKP era begin on Ethereum? 16:34 What’s different about ZK STARKs? 18:40 Vitalik and STARKs on Ethereum with Starkware 21:10 Academics finally appreciating STARKs 23:18 Healthy competition in the ZK industry 24:20 What is Starknet? 25:50 What is an L2, in Eli’s view? 27:20 Focustree, an app on Starknet 30:00 How Eli arrived at Bitcoin Season 2 34:45 When did ZK look realistic for Bitcoin? 36:55 Eli first heard about OP_CAT 39:30 Why Lightning isn’t good enough 40:30 When did Starkware start focusing on OP_CAT? 44:20 Runes bridge to Starknet! 46:00 Expanding Starknet staking to BTC 48:20 Why is OP_CAT “barely enough” for Bitcoin L2s? 51:00 The real reason people oppose OP_CAT, per Eli 53:00 The risks of *not* changing Bitcoin 55:35 The weakness of Bitcoin’s lack of governance 01:00:15 We will need to softfork for quantum!

Isabel Foxen Duke⚡️

46,022 views • 1 year ago

Just finished an absolute monster of a podcast with Justin Drake, and it’s packed with brain-melting insights on the future of Ethereum. Here are the juiciest takeaways from Part I 👇 Ethereum’s future could turn the L1 into a rollup itself and making it the best type of rollup. Justin lays out how the L1, L2s, and new designs like Beamchain, native rollups, and based sequencing all come together into a unified vision for Ethereum as the credibly neutral internet of finance. What’s Broken Today • L2s are siloed — synchronous composability is dead. • Most rely on centralized sequencers, multisigs & slow exit bridges. • L2-native assets break Ethereum’s trustless bridge model. • Governance delays, security councils, & EVM reimplementation = attack surfaces. The Fix: Ethereum-native Infrastructure • Based Rollups: Use Ethereum L1 validators as the sequencer. Removes centralization risk, restores censorship resistance. • Native Rollups: No more reimplementing the EVM. No more Security Council multisigs. They inherit Ethereum’s execution layer by design. •Preconfirmations: Users get fast UX (e.g., instant trading feedback) via ETH-backed inclusion guarantees from L1 validators, with slashing if they lie. • Real-Time ZK Proofs: Slot-by-slot proving is here. ZK-enabled rollups with instant finality are becoming possible. To get there, Ethereum is moving toward real-time, slot-by-slot proving using ZK SNARKs. This enables constant-time verification and removes the need for validators to re-execute blocks. Native rollups use a new EXECUTE precompile to introspect and reuse Ethereum’s state transition function. There is no EVM emulation, no governance lag, and no reliance on Security Councils. Preconfirmations offer ETH-backed execution guarantees per slot, priced to offset MEV opportunity loss, while based rollups decentralize sequencing by aligning with Ethereum’s validator set. Beamchain pushes this vision further: a clean-slate Ethereum L1 design that is post-quantum secure, radically simplified (validators could run on a Raspberry Pi), and ossified through optimality. It proposes gigagas/s throughput via ZK proofs, validator statelessness, and Attester-Proposer-Separation (APS) to maximize decentralization and censorship resistance, allowing Ethereum L1 to scale as a high-performance rollup itself. If you're building on Ethereum or betting on its future, this convo is mandatory listening. To be continued in Part II....

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17,769 views • 1 year ago

Shipping season never ends 🥷 1⃣ StarkWare executed the first ever quantum-safe Bitcoin transaction The first quantum-safe Bitcoin transaction in history was executed and mined on Bitcoin Mainnet using Avihu Levy’s QSB design. > QSB allows Bitcoin holders to move funds into a quantum-safe setup today, without changing the Bitcoin protocol or requiring a fork. > The transaction proved that the design can already work on Bitcoin Mainnet. > While QSB is not intended as Bitcoin’s optimal long-term post-quantum solution, it provides holders with a last-resort protection mechanism without waiting for protocol-level consensus. > The milestone builds on years of quantum-security research from StarkWare and the Starknet ecosystem. 2⃣ More builders than ever are shipping privacy primitives StarkWare launched the STRK20 Private Sprint to accelerate the development of privacy applications on Starknet. > Over 200 builders are now working on more than 170 projects spanning AI, trading, DeFi strategies, gaming, and more. > The sprint was extended by one week, with builders able to join until September 7, and anyone can join. > StarkWare also open-sourced PriPay, a private payroll system enabling recurring or one-time salary payments that remain hidden from block explorers while preserving an onchain audit trail. 3⃣ Starknet revenue is going back into the ecosystem For the first time, StarkWare delegated 25M STRK generated from Starknet sequencer revenue back into the ecosystem. > The 25M STRK is being used to strengthen projects and operators contributing to Starknet through delegation. > Round 3 of the StarkWare Delegation Program was also executed, with selected validators receiving between 5M and 20M STRK each. > The new structure comes with higher expectations around validator performance, reliability, testing, and active ecosystem participation. 4⃣ The ecosystem keeps shipping > Realms is building an L3 on top of Starknet for Blitz and Eternum, targeting significantly lower costs and better UX. > SuperVega launched its public beta, enabling one-tap options trading on BTC, ETH, ZEC, and STRK, with end-of-year expiries now available. > Extended added 22 new RWA markets during August, launched Chase Orders, and unveiled its vision to become a regulated, globally distributed onchain trading platform, starting with the EU. > Offmarket launched private Polymarket trading on Starknet. > Chance launched an intent verification layer for AI agents, with settlement proofs anchored on Starknet and native escrow wallets. > Omnisea integrated Starknet as the first non-EVM chain supported by its LayerZero-powered bridge. > Gaffer launched a new season of its fantasy football app. > VeilX went live on testnet, enabling anonymous swaps between regulated ERC-3643 assets through an Ekubo extension. > Erebus is building a private trading layer where AI agents can negotiate and trade privately. 5⃣ The numbers keep improving > 1.5B STRK are now staked on Starknet, representing ~22% of the circulating supply > 10M STRK are now being staked privately through Endur > Starknet apps generated $40M in revenue over the past year > Starknet revenue is up 1,200% YoY, with Starknet now operating profitably > Nearly 200 builders are currently shipping new privacy primitives Can’t stop, won’t stop.

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There have been whispers of Bitcoin hodlers swapping BTC for Zcash 🤔🔏 Why? Because some Bitcoiners want to be able to transact with more privacy. BUT Bitcoin can still have NATIVE privacy and scale. Eli Ben-Sasson | Starknet.io explains how ZK-proofs and OP_CAT hold the key 🗝️👇 We caught up with the 'Godfather of ZK' on Cointelegraph's Chain Reaction show this week for a deep dive into the promise of zero-knowledge technology for Bitcoin and beyond. Ben-Sasson, who co-authored the ZeroCash protocol whitepaper and helped found Zcash 🛡️, said that Bitcoin can still have native privacy and infinite scalability if developers can agree to reinstate OP_CAT, a Satoshi-era OP_Code that Bitcoin's creator disabled in 2010. It turns out that Zcash's resurgence in 2025 could be the catalyst for Bitcoin's privacy push. "I hope that one consequence of this would be that the Bitcoin community becomes more open to things like OP_CAT and OP_STARK so that it can have post-quantum security, best privacy, best scale and programmability for this beautiful hard asset that is Bitcoin." Ben-Sasson said. "The technology is ready. All you need is a soft fork adding nine lines of code that Satoshi actually introduced. It's called OP_CAT. It's very, very easy. If there's a will, there's a way. In this case, it's a very simple way to give all of that goodness to Bitcoin itself." You can watch our full conversation with Ben-Sasson in the 🧵👀📺

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