According to ConsenSys co-founder Andrew Keys, Ethereum's Serenity will begin operations by the end of this year. However, given the current state of development, few share his excitement.
In a position dated 7th January published on the ConsenSys website, Andrew Keys shared his predictions for 2020. Keys was one of the co-founders of ConsenSys, which has since become a managing partner at DARMA Capital.
While Keys' predictions were on various topics ranging from the global economy to human rights, two of them are particularly notable for their optimism.
Some of the basic Ethereum Improvement Proposals (EIP) that were introduced in the update were closely linked to Zcash (ZEC). EIP-152 improved interoperability with the actual Zcash blockchain, while EIP-1108 optimised cryptographic procedures using projects such as Aztec and ZEther.
Aztec aims to introduce confidential blockchain Ethereum (ETH) transactions through the use of SNARK zero-knowledge technology - the same power that powers Zcash screened transactions.
On the other hand, Matter Labs tries to use SNARK for scalability. At a basic level, his Zk Sync technology would relieve the burden of most off-chain transactional calculations - using zero-knowledge evidence to guarantee their proper execution.
However, these technologies are not yet available. Only Aztec looks ready to launch the cryptographic engine this month, after they performed a trusted installation ceremony on January 9th.
