powdr labs, the beginning

powdr labs, the beginning

Hello world!

We are excited to share that powdr labs, originally an Ethereum Foundation project, is now an independent organization focused on the next generation of ZK tooling, security, and applied research. We are proud to be supported by a diverse set of partners: the Ethereum Foundation, Taiko, Scroll, and the Starknet Foundation.

Since powdr was first introduced to the public we expanded our team, secured funding, started exciting collaborations and built the most flexible and composable piece of open source ZK dev tooling.

What is powdr?

the current state of ZK tooling is not future-proof

ZK teams face significant challenges upgrading to novel proving schemes due to the monolithic nature of the current approaches. Such systems involve highly specialized code which is hard to reuse and audit, and requires constant intervention of experts. As a result, teams are forced to make bets early on and stick to their existing implementations, despite ZK research producing breakthroughs at an incredible pace.

powdr is future-proof

powdr is an SDK for ZK proofs, connecting any high-level program to its most suitable prover. The compiler architecture ensures that library and backend upgrades are transparent to the frontend, providing optimal developer experience while giving access to the latest research. With powdr, ZK devs are free to integrate and experiment with new shiny techniques without worrying about high switching costs, while avoiding the risk of becoming obsolete.

Who are we?

The founding team consists of a group of EF alumni:

We are also excited to welcome talented new members who have joined us in the past months.

Open Source Funding

The powdr SDK is a public good built and maintained by powdr labs, funded by grants from our supporters. It is 100% open source and built in the open from day 1.

Ethereum has always been about empowering developers. As the network inevitably shifts toward L2 solutions and ZK technology, powdr is designed to help Ethereum scale, enhance privacy, and provide better tools for developers. The fact that not only the EF, but also some of the leading L2s, recognize the need for a tool like powdr highlights its potential to address key challenges in ZK development.

What's next?

We are working on something exciting and look forward to sharing more news soon.

If you want to collaborate or help fund public goods, please reach out on Matrix, Github, Twitter.

If you want to learn more or meet us, follow us on Twitter and catch our team at ZK Summit 12 in Lisbon where we will be giving a talk.

Now back to shipping.