BitcoinOS verifies first zero-knowledge proof on Bitcoin mainnet

Yesterday, BitcoinOS (BOS) successfully verified the first zero-knowledge (ZK) proof on Bitcoin’s mainnet. This event took place live at the Bitcoin 2024 conference.

But what does it all mean?

BitcoinOS is designed as a superlayer protocol, which is a fancy way of saying it creates a network for trustless and interoperable Bitcoin rollups. 

The recent verification of a ZK proof means Bitcoin can now potentially do more without messing with its core.

BitSNARK – A tech achievement?

The magic here is in something called BitSNARK, a software library that verifies zkSNARKs on Bitcoin. 

If you’re not a techie, think of zkSNARKs as a super-secure way of proving something without revealing all the details. This is particularly useful for privacy and scalability. 

With BitSNARK, developers can create layer-2 (L2) rollups. These rollups let you bundle multiple transactions off the main blockchain and then add them as one single transaction on the main chain. 

The first successful ZK proof was confirmed in block 853626. Edan Yago, a core contributor to BitcoinOS, described this as the “first permissionless upgrade of the Bitcoin system,” meaning the upgrade happened without needing to alter Bitcoin’s base layer.

Implications for Bitcoin

What’s the fallout from all this? First off, scalability. With L2 rollups, Bitcoin could potentially handle more transactions without the network getting bogged down. That’s big because it means faster, cheaper transactions.

Next, there’s the potential for new features. We’re talking about smart contracts and private transactions—things that Bitcoin hasn’t been known for.

BitcoinOS wants to make all the rollups on its platform work seamlessly together. Imagine a bunch of different apps and services all playing nicely in the same sandbox. That’s the goal here, reportedly.

Think of it as a hub in a wheel, where each spoke represents a different rollup. This design allows for something called “near-trustless bridges,” which lets Bitcoin move between the mainchain and L2 rollups.

Unlike other L2 solutions that require trusting a central entity, this setup wants to be more decentralized.