Протокол GKR: Новый шаг к эффективности ZK-вычислений от Виталика Бутерина Translation: GKR Protocol: A New Leap Towards Efficient ZK-Calculations by Vitalik Buterin

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has suggested the use of the GKR protocol to enhance the efficiency of traditional zk-SNARK and zk-STARK systems.

According to him, recent years have seen a trend in cryptography focused on developing specialized solutions tailored to specific types of tasks in the field of zero-knowledge proofs. Some solutions are optimized for arithmetic circuits, while others cater to mandatory transitions.

Proposed in 2010, the GKR protocol combines the strengths of both approaches. It is designed to handle large volumes of data and allows for the verification of millions of computations per second without the need to check intermediate steps.

Buterin explained that this technology is suitable for operations involving numerous identical data sets arranged in layers. Examples include mass hashing via Poseidon2 or neural network functions where a single algorithm is applied to different data sets.

In traditional systems like STARK, proofs are required for each calculation step; for instance, Merkle trees must be created for all data. This necessitates hashing 4–16 bytes for each byte of original information. GKR eliminates such operations by utilizing cryptographic commitments solely for input and output computations.

In practice, this technology has proven to be 15 times more efficient than zk-STARK-based solutions.

“However, these calculations remain theoretical. […] Practical efficiency depends on the balance between two conflicting factors: increased memory requirements and the benefits of a parallel computational architecture,” clarified Buterin.

At the core of GKR is the mathematical sumcheck method that facilitates sequential proof simplification. The system first verifies the correctness of the final result, then, through a series of transformations, works backwards to corroborate previous calculation stages, all the way back to the original data. Each step reduces the complexity of the task.

Buterin believes that zero-knowledge proofs play a crucial role in enhancing Ethereum’s scalability.

Previously, he had introduced the concept of ZKID, calling it foundational for new financial models. This technology employs zk-SNARKs for verifying information without the involvement of third parties.