2023-11-14

Published on Tuesday, November 14, 2023

By PermaDAO

In VACP

Tags VACP

Introducing VACP: Verifiable Atomic Computing Paradigm

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Author: Decent Land Labs @ Contributor of PermaDAO

Reviewer: Xiaosong HU @ Contributor of PermaDAO

Introducing VACP: Verifiable Atomic Computing Paradigm

Motivation

Many web3 dapps, products, and protocols initially aspire to be entirely decentralized, built with only onchain components. However, when they encounter scaling challenges, the incorporation of web2 elements becomes a compelling solution to enhance scalability and user experience (UX).

Centralized web2 architecture has significant benefits for scalability, but can sacrifice the core tenets of what makes web3 so powerful.

The problem

When a project incorporates web2 elements into its tech stack, it inherently starts to compromise some of the core decentralization principles, including transparency, trustlessness, and verifiability.

As a response to this challenge, we are introducing the Verifiable Atomic Computing Paradigm (VACP), accompanied by Molecular Execution Machine (MEM), a live implementation.

This approach aims to maintain the integrity of core decentralization principles while addressing scalability and user experience concerns.

So, what is VACP?

The Verifiable Atomic Computing Paradigm (VACP) is made possible with a synergy of three components:

Lazy evaluation, as pioneered by the SmartWeave protocol and 3EM.
Permissionless Verifiable Computing (VC), which enables computation to be independently verified and executed without centralized control.
Leveraging a tamper-proof Data Availability (DA) layer, such as Arweave, to ensure data integrity and availability throughout the process.

By combining these three foundational elements, VACP offers a robust framework for maintaining decentralization, transparency, and trustlessness while enabling scalable and verifiable computation for web3 developers.

Arweave's foundational role as Layer 0 across blockchains allows VACP to operate seamlessly with multichain capabilities. Utilizing Arweave's data availability verification in tandem with the KYVE protocol, VACP can trustlessly ensure data integrity across various blockchains, enhancing its versatility and reliability.

VACP visualized

1. Data compute rules and initial state upload:

A set of rules (smart contract / serverless function code) and an initial state are uploaded to the Data Availability (DA) layer.
The initial state records all state changes over time.

2. Trusted Third Party (TTP) for user interaction handling, aka Atomic Node:

A Trusted Third Party (TTP), which can be a highly scalable centralized node, is responsible for managing user interactions within the system.
The credibility of the TTP relies on trust, which is established based on its faithfulness in mirroring data uploaded to the DA layer (data truthiness validity).
The TTP's trustworthiness is contingent upon its ability to pass verifiable computation checks conducted by end-users, ensuring the integrity and accuracy of its actions.
The TTP handles tasks such as receiving user transactions, evaluating new states, and maintaining a cache of data.

In essence, VACP leverages the combination of uploaded rules and data on the DA layer, along with a trusted entity (TTP), to enable verifiable computations while maintaining a level of scalability and trust in the system's operations.

MEM is a VACP Implementation

The Molecular Execution Machine (MEM) stands as a legitimate implementation of the Verifiable Atomic Computing Paradigm (VACP) due to its adherence to the fundamental paradigm requirements:

Atomicity: MEM operates as a singular node (Trusted Third Party - TTP) capable of running an efficiently scalable web2.5 network.

Verifiable Computing: Within the MEM framework, the atomic node is continually subjected to rigorous honesty checks carried out by end-users or any interested party. Every action performed by this node can be reproduced and verified, ensuring transparency and trust within the system.

In MEM, smart contracts and interactions are housed within the same DA layer, facilitating final state verification through lazy evaluation and verifiable computing principles, in line with VACP.

What happens if the Atomic Node turns into a malicious actor?

If the Atomic Node is identified as a malicious actor, the VACP system has a safeguard mechanism in place. At any given moment, if it is established that the Atomic Node has acted dishonestly, any concerned party can access the immutable VACP interactions stored in the Data Availability (DA) layer. They can then perform a lazy evaluation, reconstructing the transaction history until they reach the last honest state.

Subsequently, the system can initiate a "hard fork" of the network from the block height corresponding to the last known honest state, effectively disregarding any fraudulent actions taken by the malicious Atomic Node. This approach ensures the network's integrity and trustworthiness by allowing it to continue from a trusted point while isolating and mitigating the effects of the dishonest actor's actions.

What sets VACP and MEM apart in the world of smart contracts

MEM, through its adherence to VACP principles, redefines the data-driven smart contracts landscape by offering enhanced scalability, better UX & DX, diversified data sources, protocol evolution, atomic node efficiency, optimal Arweave DA layer utilization, and affordability. This comprehensive approach sets MEM apart as a pioneer in the domain:

Scalability and throughput: MEM achieves superior scalability and transaction processing capabilities, surpassing other platforms in terms of Transactions Per Second (TPS) and transaction finality, and latency. This results in a network capable of handling a higher volume of interactions.
User Experience (UX) and Developer Experience (DX): VACP implementation leads to a more user-friendly and developer-friendly ecosystem within MEM, making it more accessible and efficient for both users and developers. This competitive advantage boosts adoption and innovation.
Data sources: While MEM relies on a single data source from the DA layer (Arweave L2), it leverages this data source efficiently, resulting in the creation of a faster and more secure sequencer for data-driven smart contracts.
SmartWeave protocol evolution: MEM's use of the improved SmartWeave protocol implementation, 3EM, ensures that it stays at the forefront of protocol advancements, incorporating the latest innovations in data-driven contract technology.
Atomic Node concept: MEM adopts the Atomic Node concept, offering a lightweight and highly scalable approach that outperforms competitors in terms of efficiency and responsiveness.
Utilization of the Arweave DA layer: MEM avoids limitations associated with Arweave tags by using data transactions as interaction placeholders. This innovation allows for enterprise-scale contract data computation requests, unlocking new possibilities in data-driven smart contracts.
Web2.5 optimization: MEM's focus on delivering a Web2.5 UX and DX caters to both enterprise and consumer segments, creating opportunities for growth and expansion.
Cost-efficient network setup: For under $100/mo, anyone can deploy their own web2.5 data computation network using the open source MEM codebase. This cost-effective approach, utilizing the right blend of Web2 components and software, positions MEM for rapid scalability, eliminating the need for traditional caching designs and offloading responsibilities to contract deployers.

UI-driven data attestation using VACP principles

A token-gating example of VACP with MEM and on-chain data

Consider a scenario where an application user interface (UI) can provide an attestation regarding data it fetched and assumed to be true (e.g., checking the balance of a connected wallet for token-gating purposes) based on information retrieved from the Ethereum network. This attestation should include essential metadata:

The Ethereum block at which the FE requested the balance of the External Owned Account (EOA).
The address of the token contract.
Proof of the timestamp when the data request was made using the Molecule Execution Machine (MEM) over a permanent Data Availability (DA) layer.

Once this attestation metadata is collected, it can be submitted to a MEM contract, which will store it as a permanent proof. The validity of this proof and attestation can be verified by any user by implementing the Verifiable Atomic Computing Paradigm (VACP) principles.

Summary

In summary, VACP redefines the concept of web2.5 by offering a model that combines trust, scalability, cost efficiency, user experience, data integrity, interoperability, and innovation, ultimately providing a practical and scalable framework that bridges the gap between web2 and web3 paradigms.