Microsoft Research introduced Magnetar, a virtual machine designed to generate zero-knowledge proofs of ordinary program execution faster. According to the researchers, the system supports code compiled in Rust, Go and C and averages between 10 and 39 times faster than certain comparable proving systems across the benchmarks used. Verification takes roughly 12 milliseconds and relies on standard hash functions, with the aim of reducing dependence on cryptography vulnerable to future quantum attacks. For blockchains, lower proving costs could make verifiable off-chain computation and complex application logic easier to deploy, although the results do not guarantee equivalent gains in production systems, where integration, hardware conditions and proof sizes all matter.
Source: Read the original article
