Kakarot zkEVM Founders Danilo Kim and Elias Tazartes Discuss the Rise of ZK Technology and Future of Web3
In Brief
In an exclusive interview with Metaverse Post — Kakarot zkEVM co-founders Danilo Kim and Elias Tazartes delved deep into the world of Zero-Knowledge technology and the growth and future plans of their firm.
In the fast-evolving landscape of blockchain and cryptocurrency, emerging technologies like Zero-Knowledge Proofs (ZK) have been making waves. Kakarot zkEVM, an emerging player in this arena, has been gaining steady momentum.
The company, named after iconic manga anime Dragon Ball Z’s character Goku, who is also known as “Kakarot”, aims to take the lead in the utilization of ZK technology for improving the scalability and privacy of the Ethereum Virtual Machines (EVMs).
In an exclusive interview with Metaverse Post — Kakarot zkEVM co-founders Danilo Kim and Elias Tazartes delved deep into the world of Zero-Knowledge technology and the growth and future plans of their firm.
The two tech visionaries share their journey from newcomers to seasoned developers in the crypto space and shed light on the significance of ZK technology in the blockchain industry. They discussed the unique advantages of their project and the broader implications of ZK technology on the future of Web3.
From Open Source Project to Fast-Growing Company
Danilo and Elias shared that Kakarot zkEVM began as an open-source project during a hackathon. What started as a small team’s experiment has now grown into a company with rapid development and open-source contributors.
Elias attributes Kakarot zkEVM’s success to a combination of factors that involve the Starknet’s strong community and an early mover advantage.
“Kakarot’s success can be attributed to a few key factors. Starknet has a strong community and cross-pollination abilities. We played an early role in forming Starkware’s exploration team, which promotes open source principles and provides support for Starknet engineers,” Elias told Metaverse Post. “In the blockchain space, starting with infrastructure is crucial, and we saw the need for it. Many other projects took a similar path, contributing to the ecosystem’s growth.”
Diving deep into what sets the project apart from other contemporaries like ZKSync, Kakrot’s Danilo said that their key differentiator lies in the use of Cairo, a ZK language.
Cairo is a programming language designed for developing STARK-provable general computation programs, and serves as the backbone of Starknet and StarkEx. The language drives scalability for applications on Mainnet, with notable implementations including dYdX, Sorare, ImmutableX, and more. Additionally, Cairo serves as the native smart contract language for Starknet, a permissionless decentralized Validity-Rollup platform.
“While others are building their own languages, Cairo simplifies our development. Our codebase is more readable and accessible to those without deep math cryptography knowledge. This ease of entry has attracted over 50 open-source contributors, enabling us to achieve full upgrade compatibility in just three months,” explained Danilo.
Danilo, who has been in the crypto industry since 2017, found ecosystems, particularly complex systems, intriguing well before the crypto surge. In 2022, he embarked on programming despite lacking prior experience.
“I joined hackathons and met people. It’s funny how I hardly knew any crypto enthusiasts for five years, but as soon as I started coding and attending events, it became a daily encounter with crypto folks,” Danilo told Metaverse Post.
Likewise, his co-founder Elias joined the crypto space in 2018-19, but initially wasn’t deeply involved. With a dream of becoming a builder, he started diving into development.
“I wanted to be a builder, so I started learning and even worked in the ecosystem. After a stint in a French company as a software engineer, I met Danilo at a hacker house event when DeFi came into the picture. That’s how we initially started Kakarot zkEVM,” said Elias.
Danilo and Elias believe team Kakarot possesses the firepower of a substantial software team. Despite potential higher adoption rates of competitors, they firmly assert that their strategic approach is well positioned for long-term success.
The Future of ZK Technology: an Expanding Saga
Elias and Danilo foresee two primary use cases for ZK technology: privacy and scalability. They anticipate significant disruptions in the data market, where users will own their data and decentralize data ownership.
On the scalability front, they highlighted the potential of ZK technology in enabling fast communication and collaboration between different blockchain ecosystems.
“The privacy aspect will disrupt the data market, but there will be resistance from current players. Nevertheless, it’s a significant shift towards user-owned data,” said Elias.
Adding to Elias’s point, Danilo said that, “Scalability will also play a crucial role, especially with ZK rollups and efficient communication between different chains and technologies. We’re entering a phase where ZK technology will interact with blockchain in various ways, leading to new developments and opportunities.”
Danilo added that he doesn’t view other ZkEVM projects as competitors; instead he sees them as contributors to the ecosystem’s resilience. He believes that the ecosystem is on the brink of a new era in the world of ZK technologies. He drew an analogy to the world of sagas, suggesting that the transition from Layer 2 to different sagas represents a transformative phase in the industry.
“As complexity increases, new sagas will unfold, and there’s a need for multiple implementations — for a thriving Web3 ecosystem,” said Danilo.
He suggests that the transition from Layer 2 to different sagas will represent a transformative phase in the industry.
“ZK and blockchain are a really good match because of scalability and privacy aspects. People are currently fixated on scalability, with ZK roll-ups as the initial interaction. Just as we have different nodes for decentralization, having multiple ZkEVM implementations is beneficial. If one has a bug, others can step in, fostering resilience within Web3,” Danilo told Metaverse Post. “We’re in a moment where new sagas might begin based on how we merge current technologies. It’s not the endgame; we need a new saga.”
The Essence of MuChiangMai for Crypto & Dev Community
Danilo shared his vision of creating long-term pop-up city style hackathon events, where blockchain enthusiasts can bond and collaborate. He believes that events such as MuChiangMai act as a driving force to foster deeper connections and genuine friendships within the crypto community.
MuchiangMai is Thailand’s leading hacking event, where the convergence of hacking with the real world is driven by the transformative power of blockchain and cryptography.
“Observing our previous events, we got inspired by the unique bond that comes from living with fellow crypto enthusiasts for an extended period during events such as MuchiangMai. We realized the importance of long-term spaces for bonding,” Danilo told Metaverse Post. “While we’re not organizing it ourselves, we have been actively advising the team behind it. They plan to host more events, and we support the idea of having similar events on different continents or regional areas.”
Elias said that as most people in crypto work remotely, such in-person experiences are invaluable for team spirit and collaboration.
“We plan to expand through pop-up city events to different locations, instead of conventional Hackathons and Hacker Houses centered at one location. Having such events in multiple local areas simultaneously, catering to different communities, would be ideal,” added Danilo. “People from Southeast Asia might prefer events in their region, while Latin America might have its own pop-up city event. This way, hackers and builders can choose where they want to be.”
Disclaimer
In line with the Trust Project guidelines, please note that the information provided on this page is not intended to be and should not be interpreted as legal, tax, investment, financial, or any other form of advice. It is important to only invest what you can afford to lose and to seek independent financial advice if you have any doubts. For further information, we suggest referring to the terms and conditions as well as the help and support pages provided by the issuer or advertiser. MetaversePost is committed to accurate, unbiased reporting, but market conditions are subject to change without notice.
About The Author
Victor is a Managing Tech Editor/Writer at Metaverse Post and covers artificial intelligence, crypto, data science, metaverse and cybersecurity within the enterprise realm. He boasts half a decade of media and AI experience working at well-known media outlets such as VentureBeat, DatatechVibe and Analytics India Magazine. Being a Media Mentor at prestigious universities including the Oxford and USC and with a Master's degree in data science and analytics, Victor is deeply committed to staying abreast of emerging trends. He offers readers the latest and most insightful narratives from the Tech and Web3 landscape.
More articles
Victor is a Managing Tech Editor/Writer at Metaverse Post and covers artificial intelligence, crypto, data science, metaverse and cybersecurity within the enterprise realm. He boasts half a decade of media and AI experience working at well-known media outlets such as VentureBeat, DatatechVibe and Analytics India Magazine. Being a Media Mentor at prestigious universities including the Oxford and USC and with a Master's degree in data science and analytics, Victor is deeply committed to staying abreast of emerging trends. He offers readers the latest and most insightful narratives from the Tech and Web3 landscape.
