ZKProof, The Ethereum Foundation and ZK Global Present:
Expert Series: Fundamentals of Zero-Knowledge
ZKProof has joined forces with leading organizations in our ecosystem to launch a new webinar series. With the aim of making Zero-Knowledge Proof technology more accessible to new audiences, ‘the Fundamentals of Zero-Knowledge’ will commence on February 17th, 2020.
Over the past three years, we have focused on building a strong community. We have defined best practices for the field through standardization workshops that have attracted the world’s top researchers, developers and practitioners. The results of our efforts have culminated in four standardization proposals that are currently under review and the first ZKP Community Reference Document. Along with this, we have achieved endorsements from a long list of leading institutions, such as: NIST, IBM, ING, JP Morgan, BBVA, Microsoft, Calibra, Vmware, Deloitte, Accenture, R3, Zcash Foundation, Berkeley U., Stanford, MIT, Columbia and many more.
The ZKProof workshops attract a high level of technical expertise. They are effective in advancing the standardization effort, and incentivizing top academics and developers to return (event agendas from previous workshops can be found here).
Why are we starting this webinar series?
The technical depth of ZKProof workshops presents a challenge for people who are less experienced in the field. While it can provide an outstanding opportunity for young researchers and developers to engage with experts, this forum cannot be fully harnessed without a shared foundation and a sound understanding of the workshop’s focus – Zero-Knowledge Proofs. The challenge for newcomers is exacerbated by a lack of introductory-level online resources about ZKP cryptography.
For these reasons, and in parallel to our work with seasoned professionals, we have decided to make Zero-Knowledge Proof cryptography more accessible to non-experts. In order to accomplish this, we are partnering with experts from industry and academia who volunteered to lead a series of webinars focused on the fundamentals of Zero-Knowledge in the lead up to this year’s workshop. Registration is free and each one-hour session will be followed by a live discussion and Q&A.
This webinar series is suitable for anyone with:
- An undergrad-level background in mathematics and/or computer science.
- A basic understanding of ZKP cryptography and some experience with Zero-Knowledge Proofs libraries
- Interest in understanding how proofs are constructed and the most common ZKP schemes
- A genuine desire to learn and start developing
- Interest in getting the most out of the next ZKProof Workshop
This Webinar series is brought to you as a lead up to the 3rd ZKProof Workshop
Our first webinar in the series will be held on February 17. The session, titled ‘zk-SNARKs from Bilinear Pairings’, will be led by Dr. Mary Maller.
Mary Maller is a researcher at the Ethereum Foundation (EF) who is primarily focused on theoretical cryptography and zero-knowledge proofs. In particular, her work has centered around designing proving systems with universal setups. Before joining EF she completed her PhD at the University College London (UCL) under the supervision of Sarah Meiklejohn and Jens Groth.
In this session, Mary will explain how elliptic curves are used in zero-knowledge proof systems and provide an overview of some constructions based on bilinear pairings.
Participation is free, but requires registration.
We would love to receive feedback on the ZKProof Community Forum regarding topics that you would like to see addressed in future sessions and we encourage anyone interested in leading a session to reach out to us.
See you at the webinar!
The ZKProof Team