Aleo: Pioneer of Privacy Blockchain

Aleo is a blockchain project dedicated to privacy protection, utilizing zero-knowledge proof technology (ZKP) to achieve a higher level of privacy and scalability. The core idea of the project is to enable users to perform identity verification and data processing while protecting personal data.

Project Overview

Privacy

The core of Aleo is zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs) technology, which ensures that the execution of transactions and smart contracts is carried out while maintaining privacy. By default, the details of users' transactions are hidden, a design that not only protects user privacy but also allows for selective disclosure when necessary, making it very suitable for the development of DeFi applications.

Main components include:

1. Leo programming language: Adapted from Rust, specifically designed for developing zero-knowledge applications (ZKApps), reducing the requirements for cryptographic knowledge for developers.

2. snarkVM and snarkOS: snarkVM allows off-chain computation, with only the verification of computation results on-chain, improving efficiency. snarkOS ensures the security of data and computation and allows for permissionless execution of functions.

3. zkCloud: Provides a secure and private off-chain computing environment, supporting programming interactions between users, organizations, and DAOs.

Aleo also provides an Integrated Development Environment (IDE) and Software Development Kit (SDK), supporting developers to quickly write and publish applications. Developers can deploy applications in Aleo's program registry without relying on third parties, reducing platform risk.

Scalability

Aleo adopts an off-chain processing method, where transactions are first computed for proof on the user's device, and then only the verification results are uploaded to the Blockchain. This approach greatly improves transaction processing speed and system scalability, avoiding network congestion and high fees.

Consensus Mechanism

Aleo has introduced AleoBFT, a hybrid architecture consensus mechanism that combines the instantaneous finality of validators with the computational power of provers. AleoBFT not only enhances the degree of decentralization of the network but also improves its performance and security.

1. Quick Finality of Blocks: AleoBFT ensures that each block is confirmed immediately after it is generated, enhancing node stability and user experience.

2. Decentralized Assurance: By separating block production from coinbase generation, validators are responsible for generating blocks, and provers perform proof calculations to prevent a few entities from monopolizing the network.

3. Incentive Mechanism: Validators and provers share block rewards; encourages provers to become validators by staking tokens, thereby enhancing the decentralization and computing power of the network.

Aleo allows developers to create applications that are not subject to gas limits, making it particularly suitable for applications that require long execution times, such as machine learning.

Latest Developments

Aleo plans to launch its incentive testnet on July 1st. Here are some important updates:

1. ARC-100 vote passed: The proposal involving compliance aspects, locking of funds on the network, and security measures such as delayed deposits has been approved, and the team is making final adjustments.

2. Validator Incentive Program: Launched on July 1, aimed at validating the new puzzle mechanism. The program will run until July 15, during which 1 million Aleo points will be allocated as rewards.

3. Initial supply and circulating supply: The initial supply is 1.5 billion tokens, with an initial circulating supply of approximately 10%. These tokens mainly come from Coinbase tasks and will be distributed within the first six months.

4. Testnet Beta Reset: This is the last network reset, and no new features will be added after completion; the network will be similar to the mainnet.

5. Code freeze: Completed one week ago.

6. Validator Node Expansion Plan: The initial number of validator nodes is 15, with a target to increase to 50 within the year, and ultimately reach 500.

Synthesis Puzzle: New Algorithm Analysis

The latest version of Aleo's algorithm core is called Synthesis Puzzle. Its core is to generate a common EpochProgram fixed for each epoch, by constructing an R1CS proof circuit for the input and the EpochProgram, producing the corresponding R1CS assignment (i.e., witness) and using it as a leaf node of the Merkle tree. After calculating all the leaf nodes, the Merkle root is generated and converted into the solution's proof_target.

Algorithm Process

1. Each puzzle calculation is called a nonce, constructed from the address that receives mining rewards, epoch_hash, and the random number counter.

2. In each epoch, all provers calculate the same EpochProgram, which is sampled from the instruction set using the random number generated by the current epoch_hash.

3. Use nonce as a random seed to generate the input for EpochProgram.

4. Aggregate the R1CS and input corresponding to the EpochProgram to perform witness computation.

5. After calculating all witnesses, convert them into the leaf node sequence of the Merkle tree.

6. Calculate the Merkle root and convert it to the solution's proof_target, and determine whether it meets the latest_proof_target of the current epoch.

7. The input of EpochProgram can be updated through the iterative counter in the same epoch for multiple solution calculations.

Mining Changes and Impacts

The new version of the puzzle has changed from generating proof to generating witness. The calculation logic for all solutions within each epoch is consistent, but there are significant differences in calculation logic between different epochs. This update discards the previous MSM and NTT calculations. Additionally, since the process of generating witness involves executing a program that changes with each epoch, there are some dependencies in the instructions that are executed serially, making parallelization a considerable challenge.