What is Boundless?

Developed by RISC Zero, Boundless is protocol for verifiable compute using ZK (Zero-Knowledge) proofs on any chain.

Boundless is something like… "An online market, but specifically for ZK computing on the blockchain." Boundless connects people who need ZK proofs (requestors) with people who can create ZK proofs (provers).

Remember, Boundless connects ZK Requesters and ZK Provers. So, the simplest explanation is like this.

Developers who need ZK proofs delegate that task to Boundless to be submitted and executed by Provers. Once completed, the proof will be sent to the smart contract for verification. If valid, the Prover will receive payment for their work.

So, it means that Boundless provides a decentralized marketplace for developers (requesters) and computing providers (provers) to provide ZK proofs?

Yes, that's right!

So, what does Boundless want to solve?

Boundless is designed to address:

1. Compute redundancy: traditional blockchains often repeat the execution of transactions locally, limiting throughput.
   
   It's like, instead of asking all students to redo all the same questions to ensure the results are correct, it would be better for just one student to do it and then provide proof that the answers are correct.

2. ZK infrastructure fragmentation: difficult ZK integration across chains due to lack of standards.
   
   You know, each blockchain has its own standards: ZK on Ethereum is different from ZK on Solana, there is not yet a comfortable and secure bridge.

3. High costs and resource limitations: creating ZK proofs is expensive and requires specialized infrastructure.
   
   ”No need to build expensive infrastructure. Pay according to usage. Simple & cheap.”

4. Lack of ZK computing marketplace: node operators have neither incentives nor market access for their services.

How it works?

Boundless is building an on-chain marketplace consisting of 3 main actors:

1. Requestors

Developers / protocols / applications that need ZK proof for specific tasks (for example: off-chain data verification, cross-chain communication). They upload tasks to the marketplace.

2. Provers

Node operators, GPU providers, or anyone who can execute ZK computations.They take on tasks and generate proofs. Valid proofs → are paid with rewards.

3. Validator + Verifier (On-chain Logic)

The on-chain system will verify if the proof is valid and as required. If valid, the reward is sent to the prover.

Partnership

Boundless has partnership with several major projects such as EigenLayer, UNION, Citrea, and others. The latest is Hyli, which is partnering with Boundless.

Boundless isn’t just enhancing blockchains — it’s redefining the entire web3 landscape.