On this week’s episode, Anna and Kobi Gurkan chat with Dan Boneh, Professor of Computer Science at Stanford and Director of the Stanford Center for Blockchain Research. They cover an expanse of topics: from how strides have been made within the development of zkEVMs to how trusted set ups could be integrated into the blockchain itself. This episode covers open problems in ZK such as how to generate ZK proofs on large amounts of data such as video and what solutions could be implemented when attempting to run a DAO with a private treasury.Here are some additional links for this episode:Episode 100: Dan Boneh on the past, present & future of cryptography Experimenting with Collaborative zk-SNARKs: Zero-Knowledge Proofs for Distributed Secrets by Ozdemir and Boneh, 2021Powers-of-Tau to the People: Decentralizing Setup CeremoniesZK Whiteboard Sessions Join ZK HACK III - see the full schedule here Join the ZK HACK Discord Follow the ZK Hack Twitter Today’s episode is sponsored by Mina ProtocolThe need for private, trustless solutions has never been more clear.Introducing Mina’s zkSpark Cohort 0, where developers share tutorials and build zero knowledge apps, or zkApps, and get rewarded. There are a quarter-of-a-million Mina tokens up for grabs for zkSpark Cohort 0 participants.Mina’s zkApps are written in Typescript, so developers can easily get started without learning a custom programming language like other zk protocols.To sign up for zkSpark Cohort 0 head to minaprotocol.com/zkpodcast. Mina will be launching additional zkSpark Cohorts, just visit minaprotocol.com to check out the best way to get involved.If you like what we do:Find all our links here! @ZeroKnowledge | Linktree Subscribe to our podcast newsletterFollow us on Twitter @zeroknowledgefmJoin us on TelegramCatch us on YoutubeHead to the ZK Community ForumSupport our Gitcoin Grant

In this insightful discussion, Ali Yahya, a general partner at a16z crypto and former Google Brain contributor, and Stanford professor Dan Boneh, a cryptography and machine learning expert, explore the intersection of AI and blockchain. They delve into how AI can enhance crypto through decentralized frameworks and zero-knowledge techniques, while also addressing privacy in an age of deep fakes. The duo discusses the potential of personal AI mentors, the importance of human authentication, and innovative solutions for secure digital verification. Their conversation reveals a promising future at the crossroads of these transformative technologies.

with @alive_eth @danboneh @smc90This week's all-new episode covers the convergence of two important, very top-of-mind trends: AI (artificial intelligence) & blockchains/ crypto. These domains together have major implications for how we all live our lives everyday; so this episode is for anyone just curious about, or already building in the space. The conversation covers topics ranging from deep fakes, bots, and the need for proof-of-humanity in a world of AI; to big data, large language models like ChatGPT, user control, governance, privacy and security, zero knowledge and zkML; to MEV, media, art, and much more. Our expert guests (in conversation with host Sonal Chokshi) include: Dan Boneh, Stanford Professor (and Senior Research Advisor at a16z crypto), a cryptographer who’s been working on blockchains for over a decade and who specializes in cryptography, computer security, and machine learning -- all of which intersect in this episode;Ali Yahya, general partner at a16z crypto, who also previously worked at Google -- where he not only worked on a distributed system for a fleet of robots (a sort of "collective reinforcement learning") but also worked on Google Brain, where he was one of the core contributors to the machine learning library TensorFlow built at Google.The first half of the hallway-style conversation between Ali & Dan (who go back together as student and professor at Stanford) is all about how AI could benefit from crypto, and the second half on how crypto could benefit from AI... the thread throughout is the tension between centralization vs. decentralization.  So we also discuss where the intersection of crypto and AI can bring about things that aren't possible by either one of them alone...pieces referenced in this episode/ related reading:The Next Cyber Reasoning System for Cyber Security (2023) by Mohamed Ferrag, Ammar Battah, Norbert Tihanyi, Merouane Debbah, Thierry Lestable, Lucas CordeiroA New Era in Software Security: Towards Self-Healing Software via Large Language Models and Formal Verification (2023) by  Yiannis Charalambous, Norbert Tihanyi, Ridhi Jain, Youcheng Sun, Mohamed Ferrag, Lucas CordeiroFixing Hardware Security Bugs with Large Language Models (2023) by Baleegh Ahmad, Shailja Thakur, Benjamin Tan, Ramesh Karri, Hammond PearceDo Users Write More Insecure Code with AI Assistants? (2022) by Neil Perry, Megha Srivastava, Deepak Kumar, Dan BonehAsleep at the Keyboard? Assessing the Security of GitHub Copilot's Code Contributions (2021) by Hammond Pearce, Baleegh Ahmad, Benjamin Tan, Brendan Dolan-Gavitt, Ramesh KarriVoting, Security, and Governance in Blockchains (2019) with Ali Yahya and Phil Daian    As a reminder: none of the following should be taken as investment, legal, business, or tax advice; please see a16z.com/disclosures for more important information -- including to a link to a list of our investments – especially since we are investors in companies mentioned in this episode.

In this episode, Stanford cryptography professor Dan Boneh and a16z General Partner Ali Yahya elevate our knowledge of zero-knowledge proofs and their applications in the blockchain world. Listen as they dive into the intricacies of succinct proof systems, the difference between SNARKs and STARKs, the magic of recursive SNARKs, and why zero-knowledge systems are essential to the evolution of Ethereum.Show highlights: how Ali became a general partner at a16z Crypto and why Dan started working on “the science of blockchains” what a succinct proof system is analogies for understanding zero-knowledge proofs the difference between SNARKs and STARKs and whether centralization can be fully avoided how zero-knowledge technology became so crucial for blockchains the reasons to push computations off-chain and the applications of this technology why zkEVMs are essential to help Ethereum scale why privacy is important not only in financial transactions but also in other areas like social networks and gaming the challenges that arise from trusted setups and whether it would be possible to create false proofs how to mitigate the trusted setup problem with different proof systems what is being built to make zero-knowledge proofs cheaper to create whether a privacy-focused technology can be pursued while staying compliant with regulations how zero-knowledge proofs can improve the security of blockchain bridges Thank you to our sponsors! Crypto.com Halborn Guests: Ali Yahya, general partner at a16z crypto Dan Boneh, professor of computer science and electrical engineering, Stanford University; and senior research advisor, a16z crypto Using ZK Proofs to Fight Disinformation Links Unchained: zkEVM: The Computing Overhaul to Help Scale Ethereum Previous coverage of Unchained on zero-knowledge: Can You Trace Monero? 'It's Hard - But Not Impossible,' Says Nick Bax a16z crypto: Privacy-Protecting Regulatory Solutions Using Zero-Knowledge Proofs: Full Paper zkDocs: Zero-knowledge Information Sharing How the Coming Privacy Layer Will Fix the Broken Web CoinDesk: Polygon Rolls Out Zero-Knowledge, Privacy-Enhanced Identification Product   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In a thought-provoking discussion, Dan Boneh, a cryptography expert and Stanford professor, teams up with Tim Roughgarden, a Columbia professor specializing in cryptoeconomics. They dive into how blockchain technology spurs advances in various industries, revealing groundbreaking topics like zero-knowledge proofs for privacy, automated market makers, and revolutionary governance through DAOs. Their insights highlight how these innovations could transform not just crypto, but society at large, echoing the historical impact of technology in improving human welfare.