Poseidon Hash for Faster ZK-Proofs

• Vitalik Buterin considers Poseidon hash function for upgraded zk-proofs
• He is advocating for extensive cryptanalysis to confirm Poseidon’s compliance with their security standards
• The Ethereum team has extended the application deadline for the Poseidon funding program to March 15, 2025, inviting researchers to contribute to the cryptanalysis and validation of the Poseidon hash function

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin announced on X today that the Ethereum team is considering migrating to the Poseidon hash function. The goal is to make zero-knowledge proof systems (zk-provers) work better on the network. 

He stressed that it’s key to really understand Poseidon’s security before using it, and asked researchers to join the current Poseidon cryptanalysis program. 

The Ethereum team has moved the deadline for the program to March 15, 2025, and is inviting researchers from the International Association for Cryptologic Research (IACR) and the industry to apply.

Potential Benefits of Poseidon Integration

Integrating Poseidon could optimize Ethereum’s zk-prover operations, potentially leading to more efficient and scalable privacy-preserving applications on the network. 

However, as Poseidon is a relatively new cryptographic primitive (a low-level cryptographic algorithm used as a basic building block for higher-level cryptographic algorithms), so a thorough security analysis is needed before adoption.

As such, Buterin’s call for extensive cryptanalysis aims to determine if Poseidon satisfies Ethereum’s exacting security benchmarks, thus mitigating the risk of network vulnerabilities.

Poseidon and ZKPs: Explained

Developed in 2019, Poseidon is a cryptographic hash function designed for zero-knowledge proof (ZKP) systems. 

Unlike standard hash functions like SHA-256 or Keccak, which are optimized for general-purpose cryptography, Poseidon is specifically built for fast calculations in zero-knowledge circuits.

On the other hand, ZKPs allow one party to prove to another that a statement is true without revealing any additional information. Because of this, they are very important for making privacy and scalability better in blockchain applications.

Since it is designed specifically for ZKP systems, Poseidon offers efficient performance within zk-provers due to its algebraic structure, which aligns well with the arithmetic circuits used in these proofs.

This could give Ethereum several advantages, like lower gas fees for zk-rollups, faster proof generation, better privacy for on-chain transactions, and even future compatibility with Ethereum Layer 2 and beyond.

Ethereum: A More Competitive Platform?

There are a lot of technicalities at play here, but the implications for Ethereum could be massive in case the migration takes place.

It could mark a significant upgrade in the efficiency and scalability of ZKPs on the network. As a result, users could experience cheaper transactions, better privacy, and faster rollup finality, making Ethereum more competitive as a global smart contract and privacy platform.