Cardano Breaks New Ground with Its First-Ever ZK Smart Contract

Cardano
blockchain
has
achieved
a
significant
milestone
in
the

blockchain
landscape
by
deploying
its
first
zero-knowledge
smart
contract.
The
Input
Output
Research
team
tested
the
Halo2
smart
contract
in
the
smart
contract
platform
of
Cardano,
Plutus.
The
zero
knowledge
proof
smart
contract
uses
Plutus
v3
ledger
language
that
offers
a
formidable
boost
to
the
capabilities
of
Cardano.
Halo2
is
an
innovative
cryptographic
proof
protocol
that
can
offer
significant
improvements
in
scalability
alongside
enhancing
user
privacy.
The
strategic
move
to
introduce
a
zero-knowledge
smart
contract
indicates
that
Cardano
has
a
vision
to
become
one
of
the
most
advanced

blockchain
platforms
in
future.
Let
us
learn
more
about
the
Halo2
system
and
its
impact
on
Cardano.

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Unraveling
the
Details
of
the
Milestone
Initiative 

Before
you
learn
more
about
the
Halo2
system,
you
must
know
about
the
event
that
shifted
the
limelight
towards

Cardano.
The
Input
Output
Research
team
deployed
the
Halo2
proof
on
the
Cardano
mainnet
for
Ad-hoc
Threshold
Multi-signature
Scheme
or
ATMS.
The
scheme
worked
on
successful
validation
of
50
out
of
90
signatures
and
marked
the
beginning
of
zero-knowledge
applications
on
Cardano
blockchain. 

With
the
new
Cardano
ZK
smart
contract
Halo2,
the
network
can
also
allow
integration
of
partner
chains
such
as
Midnight
with
Cardano.
The
new
development
can
make
the
network
more
versatile,
faster
and
safer,
with
benefits
for
developers
as
well
as
users.
The
revolutionary
zk
smart
contract
deployment
on
Cardano
mainnet
involves
two
notable
transactions
for
locking
and
unlocking
funds.

First
transaction
of
the
deployment
focused
on
freezing
the
funds
while
the
second
one
unlocked
the
funds
with
Halo2
protocol.
The
first
transaction
incurred
a
charge
of
0.16
ADA
while
the
second
transaction
required
2.03
ADA.
Input
Output
Holdings
pointed
out
that
the
cost
of
unlocking
funds
with
Halo2
is
significantly
low
for
the
advanced

cryptographic
processes
involved
in
the
transaction.
The
test
for
deploying
Halo2
on
Cardano
mainnet
showcased
the
ability
of
Plutus
to
manage
complex
cryptographic
operations.

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Importance
of
ATMS
in
the
Halo2
Test 

You
might
have
noticed
the
term
‘ATMS’
in
the
basic
details
of
the
Halo2
test.
The
Ad-hoc
Threshold
Multi-signature
Scheme
is
a
crucial
component
for
developing
Proof-of-Stake
sidechains.
It
has
been
created
by
professional
cryptographers
for
security
of
Cardano

smart
contracts
alongside
enhancing
scalability
of
Cardano
and
its

sidechains.
Successful
verification
of
ATMS
signatures
with
Halo2
indicates
that
Cardano
blockchain
is
now
capable
of
managing
sophisticated
cryptographic
applications.
The
verification
also
provides
the
ideal
foundation
for
future
tests
such
as
testing
recursive
Halo2
proofs
in
the
Plutus
platform.

Discovering
the
Fundamentals
of
Halo2

The
Halo2
system
is
a
zero-knowledge
verification
system
that
enables
verification
of
transactions
without
disclosing
the
important
details.
It
has
been
created
by
the
Electric
Coin
Company
and
uses

zk-SNARK
or
Zero-Knowledge
Succinct
Non-interactive
Argument
of
Knowledge
technology.
The
primary
goal
of
Halo2
focuses
on
removing
the
need
for
a
trustless
environment
as
it
uses
cryptographic
proof
to
verify
transactions
without
exposing
transaction
details. 

Halo2
represents
a
quantum
leap
for
validating
transactions
on
Cardano
as
it
can
enable
safe
verification
without
revealing
private
information.
The
recursive
proofs
available
with
Halo2
ensure
that
users
don’t
need
a
trusted
setup.
It
will
be
a
huge
step
for
redefining
conventional
notions
about
security
and
scalability
with
blockchain
technology. 

Unique
Functionalities
of
Halo2 

The
details
of
Cardano
first
ZK
smart
contract
also
draw
attention
towards
other
aspects
of
the
Halo2
proving
system.
Cardano
stated
that
the
Halo2
system
uses
the
PLONK
protocol
as
it
is
a
trusted
universal
zk-SNARK
framework
for
optimizing
flexibility
and
efficiency.
It
is
also
important
to
note
that
Halo2
includes
different
components
that
break
its
functions
into
different
modular
elements.
As
a
result,
Halo2
ensures
that
the
Cardano
mainnet
will
not
struggle
with
cryptographic
requirements
of
the
zero-knowledge
proof.

The
unique
approach
of
Halo2
empowers
only
one
party
to
confirm
transactions
to
another
party
without
revealing
underlying
data.
Halo2
is
different
from
conventional
zk-SNARK
systems
as
it
does
not
require
a
trusted
setup.
It
is
also
important
to
note
that
Halo2
supports
recursive
proofs
that
can
divide
cryptographic
computations
into
small
segments.
The
proof
from
one
stage
of
the
computation
will
serve
as
inputs
for
the
next
stage
of
the
proof
computation.
The
most
important
advantage
of
Halo2
is
the
assurance
of
efficient
proof
aggregation
that
can
promote
scalability
and
performance.     

Identifying
the
Innovations
Introduced
with
Halo2

Cardano
blockchain
moved
one
step
ahead
of
its
competitors
with
the
successful
test
of
Halo2
proving
system.
The
vision
that
made
Cardano
launch
zk
smart
contract
focuses
on
achieving
better
scalability
and
security.
The
Electric
Coin
Company
created
Halo2
as
an
enhancement
of
the
Halo
protocol
to
improve
security,
adaptability
and
efficiency.
It
also
leverages
the
PLONK
protocol
to
ensure
more
speed
and
flexibility.

Without
the
need
for
a
trusted
setup
that
is
required
in
many
zk-SNARK
systems,
Halo2
avoids
many
security
concerns.
The
modular
structure
of
Halo2
with
distinctive
components
ensures
that
it
can
adapt
quickly
to
different
needs
for
cryptographic
computation.
Halo2
also
ensures
lower
overhead
by
reducing
the
costs
of
generating

zero-knowledge
proofs
and
verifying
them.
The
lower
overhead
makes
Halo2
a
practical
choice
for
different
real-world
applications.

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to
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Novel
Opportunities
for
Developers
with
Halo2 

The
introduction
of
Halo2
provides
many
new
opportunities
for
developers
working
with
Cardano
blockchain.
Halo2
offers
unique
advantages
for
developers
such
as
enhanced
privacy,
cross-chain
compatibility
and
better

scalability.
Developers
can
use
Halo2
to
create
apps
that
provide
better
safeguards
for
user
data
such
as
secure
voting
systems
and
apps
for
private
transactions.
Halo2
also
opens
new
possibilities
for
bridging
Cardano
with
other

blockchain
networks
that
support
zk-SNARKs,
thereby
empowering
cross-chain
innovation.
Most
important
of
all,
the
efficiency
of
Halo2
allows
you
to
develop
scalable
apps
that
can
support
thousands
of
users
without
network
congestion. 

Developers
can
capitalize
on
the
zero
knowledge
proof
smart
contract
to
make
the
most
of
its
cryptographic
capabilities.
Halo2
can
help
in
creating
secure
voting
systems
that
offer
better
integrity
and
privacy
in
elections.
You
can
also
use
Halo2
to
create
solutions
for
supply
chain
auditing
on
Cardano
blockchain
to
safeguard
sensitive
supply
chain
data.
Another
notable
application
of
Halo2
is
the
assurance
of
protecting
sensitive
datasets
for
decentralized
machine
learning
alongside
encouraging
collaborative
development.
Integration
of
Halo2
makes
Cardano
a
strong
base
to
create
solutions
with
higher
scalability
and
privacy.

Why
is
Cardano
the
Ideal
Pick
for
Deploying
Halo2?

The
revolutionary
features
of
zero-knowledge
smart
contracts
can
play
a
major
in
enhancing
privacy
in
the

blockchain
ecosystem.
One
of
the
distinctive
highlights
of
zero-knowledge
proofs
is
that
they
can
improve
scalability
of
blockchain
networks
with
lower
costs.
You
must
know
that
cost
and
scalability
are
the
two
most
crucial
factors
for
which
Cardano
has
an
edge
over
other
blockchain
networks. 

Upon
comparing
Cardano
with

Ethereum
for
deploying
Halo2,
Cardano
emerged
as
a
cost-effective
option.
The
cost
of
locking
and
unlocking
funds
on
Cardano
is
considerably
low
according
to
the
Input
Output
research
team.
On
the
other
hand,
Ethereum
imposes
the
burden
of
gas
fees
that
ultimately
increases
cost
of
zero-knowledge
proof
transactions.     

Cardano
will
also
have
better
results
in
terms
of
scalability
with
the
Halo2
system.
The
Input
Output
research
team
implemented
different
tests
for
Halo2
and
showcased
its
efficiency,
even
for
verifying
multiple
signatures
simultaneously.
It
is
also
important
to
note
that
Cardano
has
a
unique
UTxO
model
that
ensures
parallel
transaction
processing.
The
UTxO
model
is
better
than
the
Proof
of
Stake
consensus
of
Ethereum,
which
presents
multiple
bottlenecks
for
implementing
Halo2.
While
Cardano
can
support
almost
250
transactions
per
second,
Ethereum
has
to
struggle
with
15
to
30
transactions
per
second.

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New
Directions
for
Cross-Border
Payments
and
Crypto
Payment
Platforms

The
success
of
Cardano
ZK
smart
contract
opens
new
avenues
for
revolutionizing
cross-border
payment
services.
As
a
matter
of
fact,
zk
smart
contracts
can
replace
the
conventional
escrow
services
used
for
cross-border
payments.
The
benefits
of
zk
smart
contracts
help
in
verifying
transactions
without
revealing
sensitive
information.
As
a
result,
they
can
ensure
privacy
and
security
of
cross-border
payment
transactions.

Crypto
payment
platforms
will
also
gain
promising
advantages
from
the
Halo2
system.
ZK
proofs
can
provide
trustless
escrows
alongside
supporting
on-chain
payments
related
to
off-chain
events.
Zero
knowledge
smart
contracts
might
create
a
future
that
ensures
better
efficiency
of
crypto
payment.
In
addition,
the
elements
of
privacy
and
security
can
ensure
that
crypto
payment
platforms
will
achieve
better
regulatory
compliance.

Final
Thoughts 

The
Input
Output
team
has
expressed
the
details
of
Halo2
proving
system
on
all
their
social
media
platforms.

Zero-knowledge
proofs
ensure
verification
of
transactions
without
disclosing
underlying
information.
It
can
provide
the
assurance
for
better
privacy
and
increased
speed
of
computation.
The
recursive
proofs
used
in
Halo2
ensure
that
Cardano
can
achieve
better
scalability.
Recursive
proofs
ensure
simplification
of
complex
processes
that
offer
the
ideal
foundation
to
achieve
better
efficiency
for
all
transactions
in
the
Cardano
ecosystem.
The
successful
testing
of
a
ZK
smart
contract
on
the
Cardano
mainnet
creates
new
possibilities
for
innovation
and
scaling
up
the
operations
of
Cardano. 

*Disclaimer:
The
article
should
not
be
taken
as,
and
is
not
intended
to
provide
any
investment
advice.
Claims
made
in
this
article
do
not
constitute
investment
advice
and
should
not
be
taken
as
such.
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person
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