Aztec - Reading Assignment

  1. Because of on-chain verification gas costs, slow proof construction, and a lack of interoperability between assets
  2. A note is a form of UTXO which allows interoperability between dApps interacting in zero knowledge.
  3. delegate the validation of proofs to specific validation contracts and secondly to process state update instructions inside note registries that result from the successful validated proofs.
  4. Inputs and outputs and their value are hidden
  5. by relaying transactions and obscuring gas payments in a decentralized manner.
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  1. Why are traditional zkp systems unworkable on Ethereum?
    Due to a combination of on-chain verification gas costs, slow proof construction, and a lack of interoperability between assets.

  2. What is a ‘Note’ and why is it necessary?
    The core of any AZTEC transaction, it follows a UTXO model similar to Bitcoin.
    The state of notes are managed by a Note Registry for any given asset, so the user´s balance of any AZTEC asset is made up of the sum of all the valid notes their address owns in a given Note Registry.

  3. What are the two functions of the Aztec Cryptography Engine?
    Delegate the validation of proofs to specific validation contracts and secondly to process state update instructions inside note registries that result from the successful validation proofs.

  4. What piece(s) of information are shielded on Aztec ‘out-of-the-box’?
    The inputs and outputs of any transaction are represented as encrypted numbers and the value hidden from public view, with this AZTEC enables confidential transactions out of the box.

  5. How does Aztec plan to shield the remaining pieces of information?
    Combining stealth addresses and a trusted party to realy transactions. Using a trusted third party hides the payment of gas and provides full anonymity. Future updates to the protocol will allow the relay of transactions whilst obscuring the payment of gas in a decentralised manor. At that point fully private transactions will be possible.

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  1. Traditional Zero Knowledge Proofs are unworkable on Ethereum due to a combination of on-chain verification gas costs, slow proof construction, and a lack of interoperability between assets.

  2. An AZTEC note is an encrypted representation of abstract value. It is an output of the AZTEC commitment function comprised of a tuple of elliptic curve commitments and 3 scalers: a viewing key, a spending key, and a message.

  3. The AZTEC Cryptography Engine or ACE has two primary functions; first to delegate the validation of proofs to specific validation contracts and secondly to process state update instructions inside note registries that result from the successful validated proofs.

  4. AZTEC enables confidential transactions which encrypts the transaction inputs and outputs and the value is hidden from public view.

  5. AZTEC plans to use a trusted party to relay transactions in order to hid the payment of gas and provide full anonymity.

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1 - Why are traditional zkp systems unworkable on Ethereum?

The validation of traditional Zero-knowledge systems on Ethereum is unworkable. This is due to a combination of on-chain verification gas costs, slow proof construction, and a lack of interoperability between assets. The lack of interoperability and inability for proof construction to run on a clients browser make these systems unsuitable for use in real world financial applications

2 - What is a ‘Note’ and why is it necessary?

A Note is the entity in AZtec that stores the value(s) that an address has acces to within a Note Registry. In other words, a user’s balance of AZTEC asset.

3 - What are the two functions of the Aztec Cryptography Engine?

The AZTEC Cryptography Engine or ACE. ACE has two primary functions; first to delegate the validation of proofs to specific validation contracts and secondly to process state update instructions inside note registries that result from the successful validated proofs.

4 - What piece(s) of information are shielded on Aztec ‘out-of-the-box’?

AZTEC enables confidential transactions out of the box. The inputs and outputs of any transactions are represented as encrypted numbers and the value hidden from public view.

5 - How does Aztec plan to shield the remaining pieces of information?

Combining stealth addresses and a trusted party to relay transactions achieves full anonymity. Using a trusted third party hides the payment of gas and provides full anonymity

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  1. Lack of privacy
  2. @Grant_Hawkins I am fully sure based on the article but are Notes essentially similar to UTXOs generated by validating successfully the proof?
  3. " first to delegate the validation of proofs to specific validation contracts and secondly to process state update instructions inside note registries that result from the successful validated proofs."
  4. The transacting amounts
  5. " Combining stealth addresses and a trusted party to relay transactions achieves full anonymity. Using a trusted third party hides the payment of gas and provides full anonymity. Future updates to the protocol will allow the relay of transactions whilst obscuring the payment of gas in a decentralised manor. At that point fully private transactions will be possible."

This project involves too much trusted parties for a decentralized flow.

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Yes indeed!

So a zcash UTXO is comprised of (1) a valid serial number (2) a proof (zkSNARK) that the serial number is valid. An Aztec note would look the same.

#1 - Why are traditional zkp systems unworkable on Ethereum?
Because of on-chain verification gas costs, slow proof construction, and a lack of interoperability between assets

#2 - What is a ‘Note’ and why is it necessary?
A note is like a UTXO

#3 - What are the two functions of the Aztec Cryptography Engine?
To delegate the validation of proofs to specific validation contracts and secondly to process state update instructions inside note registries that result from the successful validated proofs

#4 - What piece(s) of information are shielded on Aztec ‘out-of-the-box’?
Inputs and Outputs

#5 - How does Aztec plan to shield the remaining pieces of information?
stealth addresses and a trusted party to hide the payment of GAS (In the future there will be a decentralised way…:+1: )

2 Likes
  1. Because of high on-chain verification gas costs, a slow proof construction and a lack of interoperability between assets, especially the range proofs is a problem.

  2. You could see the note as an output of a transaction which a user/owner is allowed to spend. The sum of all notes is the entire balance a participant in the network can spend. It is quite similar to Bitcoin UTXOs. On Aztec the notes are the unspending transactions output and all of them are stored in the Note registry.

  3. First: delegate the validation of proofs to specific validation contracts
    Second: process state update instructions inside note registries which resulting from the successful validated proofs

  4. The inputs and outputs of a transaction

  5. Stealth addresses and hide the the transaction graph. With the combination of stealth addresses and a trusted party to relay transactions full (hide payment of gas) anonymity is given.

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  1. ZKP systems are unworkable on Ethereum due to slow proof construction, gas costs being verified on-chain and no interoperability between assets.

  2. Notes are UTXO’s unspent transactions.

  3. 2 functions of ACE allocate validated proofs to a validation contract and to update instructions in the note registries.

  4. Inputs and outputs are presented as an encrypted number and the value is hidden.

  5. The remaining information is shielded by using stealth addresses, a trusted third party and as AZTEC does not require the sender to be part of the TX’s the transaction graph can also be hidden…

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  1. Why are traditional zkp systems unworkable on Ethereum?
  • This is due to a combination of on-chain verification gas costs, slow proof construction, and a lack of interoperability between assets.
  1. What is a ‘Note’ and why is it necessary?
  • The core of any AZTEC transaction is a Note.
  1. What are the two functions of the Aztec Cryptography Engine?
  • Delegate the validation of proofs to specific validation contracts and secondly

  • Process state update instructions inside note registries that result from the successful validated proofs.

  1. What piece(s) of information are shielded on Aztec ‘out-of-the-box’?
  • The transaction inputs and output.
  1. How does Aztec plan to shield the remaining pieces of information?
  • By combining stealth addresses and a trusted party to relay transactions.
1 Like

1. Why are traditional zkp systems unworkable on Ethereum?
High on-chain verification gas costs, slow proof construction, and a lack of interoperability between assets.

2. What is a ‘Note’ and why is it necessary?
It is comparable to a UTXO so it keeps track of who owns what

3. What are the two functions of the Aztec Cryptography Engine?

  • To delegate the validation of proofs to specific validation contracts

  • To process state update instructions inside note registries that result from the successful validated proofs

4. What piece(s) of information are shielded on Aztec ‘out-of-the-box’?
The inputs and outputs are encrypted

5. How does Aztec plan to shield the remaining pieces of information?
Combining stealth addresses and a trusted party to relay transactions achieves full anonymity. Using a trusted third party hides the payment of gas and provides full anonymity. Future updates to the protocol will allow the relay of transactions whilst obscuring the payment of gas in a decentralised manor. At that point fully private transactions will be possible.

1 Like
  1. Why are traditional zkp systems unworkable on Ethereum?
    gas costs, slow proof construction, and a lack of interoperability between assets

  2. What is a ‘Note’ and why is it necessary?
    An AZTEC transaction is a note, necessary to get interoperaboliility between Dapps in zero knowledge

  3. What are the two functions of the Aztec Cryptography Engine?

  4. What piece(s) of information are shielded on Aztec ‘out-of-the-box’?
    Transaction inputs and outputs

  5. How does Aztec plan to shield the remaining pieces of information?
    by using stealth adresses, hidden transactions graphs and trusted party relay transactions

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Whoa. I was wondering about Ehereum. This whole course has been UTxO.
I hope they cover Aztec in DeFi 201. This is huge. Even though it doesn’t seem quite ready yet…

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• On-chain verification gas costs, slow proof construction, and a lack of interoperability between assets. The lack of interoperability and inability for proof construction to run on a client’s browser make these systems unsuitable for use in real world financial applications
• A note would be the amounts one holds in the wallet, to validate you have an UTXO.
• first to delegate the validation of proofs to specific validation contracts and secondly to process state update instructions inside note registries that result from the successful validated proofs.
• Inputs and outputs.
• Combining stealth addresses and a trusted party to relay transactions achieves full anonymity and further protocol updates.

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Yes - esp related to your comment on the complexity of Zcash. The Ethereum protocols make things so simple, just a library of functions and a public contract that constructs/validates proofs. StarkWare is pretty fascinating as well.

If you want a course on Ethereum privacy, tweet it to Ivan :wink:

2 Likes
  1. Zero knowledge proof systems are unworkable on Ethereum because of on-chain verification gas costs, slow proof construction and a lack of interoperability between assets.

  2. A note is a transaction that has been secured using homo-morphic encryption and range proofs. It encrypts a number which represents the transaction value before sending it to an Ethereum address. It is necessary because it is the core of any Aztec transaction.

  3. The two functions of the Aztec Cryptography Engine are; a) to delegate the validation of proofs to specific validation contracts, and b) to process state update instructions inside note registries that result from the successful validated proofs.

  4. The pieces of information which are shielded “out of the box” on Aztec are the inputs and the outputs of a transaction.

  5. Aztec plans to shield the remaining pieces of information by combining stealth addresses and a trusted party to relay transactions.

1 Like
  1. On-chain verification gas cost due to range proofs, slow proof construction and a lack of interoperability between assets.
  2. The notes are the core of the AZTEC TXs. The user’s balance of any AZTEC asset is made up of the sum of all of the valid notes their address owns in a given Note Registry.
  3. The two functions of ACE are: first to delegate the validation of proofs to specific validation contracts and secondly to process state update instructions inside note registries that result from the successful validated proofs.
  4. What is hidden on Aztek are the inputs and outputs of the transactions.
  5. To achieve full anonymity of transactions, stealth addresses must be combined with a trusted party.
  1. High on-chain gas costs, slow proof construction, and a lack of interoperability between assets.
  2. Notes are based on a UTXO model. They summarize all assets owned by an address. The state of notes are managed by a Note Registry for any given asset.
  3. First to delegate the validation of proofs to specific validation contracts and secondly to process state update instructions inside note registries that result from the successful validated proofs.
  4. The inputs and outputs of any transactions are represented as encrypted numbers and the value hidden from public view.
  5. ombining stealth addresses and a trusted party to relay transactions achieves full anonymity. Using a trusted third party hides the payment of gas and provides full anonymity. Future updates to the protocol will allow the relay of transactions whilst obscuring the payment of gas in a decentralized manor.
  1. Zero knowledge proof systems are unworkable on Ethereum because of on-chain verification gas costs, slow proof construction and a lack of interoperability between assets.

  2. A note is a transaction that has been secured using homo-morphic encryption and range proofs. It encrypts a number which represents the transaction value before sending it to an Ethereum address. It is necessary because it is the core of any Aztec transaction.

  3. The two functions of the Aztec Cryptography Engine are
    a) to delegate the validation of proofs to specific validation contracts, and
    b) to process state update instructions inside note registries that result from the successful validated proofs.

  4. The pieces of information which are shielded “out of the box” on Aztec are the inputs and the outputs of a transaction.

  5. Aztec plans to shield the remaining pieces of information by combining stealth addresses and a trusted party to relay transactions.

1 Like
  1. Due to a combination of on-chain verification gas costs, slow proof construction, and a lack of interoperability between assets.
  2. The core of any AZTEC transaction.
  3. To delegate the validation of proofs to specific validation contracts and to process state update instructions inside note registries that result from the successfully validated proofs.
  4. The inputs and outputs of any transactions are shielded.
  5. By combining stealth addresses and a trusted party to relay transactions.