Swan DevGrant<zk-Useful Work>

[Cc-a23187]

Open Grant Proposal: Develop the 'zk-Useful Work' system utilizing zero-knowledge proofs to ensure tasks are verifiable and rewards are equitable and transparent.

Project Name:zk-Useful Work

Proposal Category: Applications

Individual or Entity Name: Swift DAO

Proposer: Cc-a23187

(Optional) Swan ecosystem affiliations: None

(Optional) Technical Sponsor: None

Do you agree to open source all work you do on behalf of this RFP under the MIT/Apache-2 dual-license?: Yes

Project Summary

Leveraging zero-knowledge proofs enables the verification of extensive computations within Solidity programs, even very large ones. While traditional blockchains often reward people based on minor data points (successful DeFi trades, unique human identity, airdrop sign-ups), there is an untapped potential to reward larger, objectively verifiable tasks like solving complex math problems or conducting physics simulations.

Long-standing initiatives like folding@home and the BOINC initiative encourage people to contribute to solving computational problems. However, these systems lack financial incentives for participants.

In cryptographic literature, these proofs of extensive computations fall under the category of Proofs of (Useful) Work, typically used for rate limiting or consensus. There have been several attempts at incorporating Proofs of Useful Work in consensus, such as PrimeCoin. Yet, our goal would be solely to reward individuals for their useful work.

Interestingly, the Swan network partially incorporates this by rewarding users for creating zero-knowledge proofs. It would be beneficial to extend this to reward people for solving other computational challenges.

We propose a platform that leverages the Swan network to reward individuals for solving computational problems, which contributes to the greater good of the Swan network. By using zero-knowledge proofs, we aim to create a system where tasks are verifiable and the rewards are fair and transparent. This will incentivize individuals to participate and contribute their computational resources.

Impact

By making use of zero-knowledge proofs, we can incentivize the world to solve real computational problems and be fairly rewarded for this. And all of this in a trustless way. The resulting solutions, from the travelling salesman problem to prime search, could help make numerous systems in the world more secure, efficient and smart.

• To build a platform that rewards users for solving computational problems and contributing to the greater good.
• To apply zero-knowledge proofs for the verification of tasks and fair distribution of rewards.
• To inspire more people to contribute their computational resources by providing financial incentives.

Outcomes

Through zero-knowledge proofs, we can encourage the global community to solve real computational problems and reward them fairly in a trustless manner. The solutions, ranging from the traveling salesman problem to prime search, can enhance the security, efficiency, and intelligence of numerous global systems.

The proposed platform aims to transform the way computational challenges are tackled. By offering financial incentives, we can stimulate more individuals to leverage their computing resources. This approach not only expedites the process of solving complex issues but also democratizes access to high-performance computing. Moreover, the use of zero-knowledge proofs makes the process fair, transparent, and verifiable, fostering trust in the system.

Introducing a financially incentivized problem-solving system within the Swan ecosystem could also increase interaction with Swan and Web3 technologies. This could potentially grow the user base and cultivate a diverse community of contributors. Furthermore, the success of this project could inspire the integration of financial incentives into other computational and problem-solving areas, thereby spurring innovation in the wider blockchain and cryptocurrency realm.

To-do list:

• Research on the concept of zero-knowledge proofs and its applications in verifying useful work.
• Review cryptographic literature on Proofs of (Useful) Work.
• Study how the Swan network rewards users for creating zero-knowledge proofs.
• Identify potential computational problems that can be solved using zero-knowledge proofs.
• Formulate a strategy to leverage the Swan network to reward individuals for solving identified computational problems.
• Build a prototype platform that rewards users for solving computational problems.
• Apply zero-knowledge proofs to the platform for task verification and reward distribution.
• Test the prototype platform to check its functionality and efficiency.
• Refine the platform based on the test results.
• Launch the finalized platform.
• Monitor the performance of the platform and make necessary adjustments or improvements.

Adoption, Reach, and Growth Strategies

• Prepare a document explaining why this specific computational problem or set of problems is more suitable for a bounty on Layer2 than on a public blockchain like Swan.
• Create a detailed guide on how users can deploy the contract, submit bounties, and offer solutions.
• Develop a zkDSL program for one specific computational problem, adhering to the design specifications.
• Optional: Depending on the problem, rewarding partial work may be possible. For example, in the Mersenne primes search, rewards could be given for confirming which numbers are not Mersenne primes, though this might increase computational overhead. For your chosen problem, estimate the computational resources and costs for covering a search area. Consider if offering rewards for partial work is viable, assuming coordination to avoid duplicate searches.
• Optional: Foster partnerships with academic institutions and research organizations to diversify the computational problems addressed by the platform.
• Optional: Continually refine and enhance the platform based on user feedback and technological developments.
• Optional: Grow the user base and improve platform accessibility, making computational problem-solving and blockchain technology more user-friendly for the general public.

Development Roadmap

The project is complex, requiring a multi-stage approach split into milestones. Initial efforts will focus on research and formalization of a computational problem that can be encoded into a Solidity program. Following this, a basic Solidity program will be developed that can check for correct solutions and reveal them. Optionally, a more sophisticated Solidity program can be developed that only reveals the solution to the bounty offered.

The project timeline is broken down into five significant milestones:

1. Detailed Analysis of the Product Overview and Design: Involves in-depth analysis of the product's concept and design framework, establishing project objectives, identifying potential challenges, and defining strategies to overcome them. Key features and functionalities of the product will be formulated, and a detailed design blueprint will be created.
2. Development of the Dapp's Foundational Components: Post design finalization, the development phase will begin, covering the building of the fundamental components of the Dapp, including back-end infrastructure, front-end interface, and the necessary API and service integrations. The zero-knowledge proofs mechanism for task verification and reward distribution will also be implemented.
3. Rigorous Testing and Refinement of the Dapp: Post development, rigorous testing of the Dapp will be conducted to ensure reliability, efficiency, and security. User feedback will be collected to refine and improve the Dapp's features and performance.
4. Validation and Final Delivery of the Dapp: The product will be validated against the initial objectives, involving user acceptance testing and final approval from stakeholders. Once validated and issues addressed, the final delivery will proceed.
5. Post-Delivery Maintenance and Updates: After the product is delivered, continuous monitoring of the Dapp's performance will occur, along with regular updates to improve its features and functionalities. User feedback will be responded to, and necessary changes made to enhance the user experience.

This comprehensive timeline aims to deliver a high-quality Dapp that meets the project objectives and provides value to the users.
Milestone 1: Detailed Analysis of the Product Overview and Design

Budget: $7,500

Number of hours (roughly): 150

Summary of work:

Involves in-depth analysis of the product's concept and design framework, establishing project objectives, identifying potential challenges, and defining strategies to overcome them. Key features and functionalities of the product will be formulated, and a detailed design blueprint will be created.

Milestone 2: Development of the Dapp's Foundational Components

Budget: $15,000

Number of hours (roughly): 300

Summary of work:

Focuses on the development phase, covering the building of the fundamental components of the Dapp, including back-end infrastructure, front-end interface, and the necessary API and service integrations. The zero-knowledge proofs mechanism for task verification and reward distribution will also be implemented.

Milestone 3: Rigorous Testing and Refinement of the Dapp

Budget: $8,800

Number of hours (roughly): 176

Summary of work:

Upon the completion of the development phase, rigorous testing of the Dapp will be conducted to ensure its reliability, efficiency, and security. User feedback will be collected to refine and improve the Dapp's features and performance.

Milestone 4: Validation and Final Delivery of the Dapp

Budget: $3,000

Number of hours (roughly): 60

Summary of work:

The product will be validated against the initial objectives, involving user acceptance testing and final approval from stakeholders. Once validated and all the issues are addressed, the final delivery will proceed.

Total Budget Requested

Milestone	Description	Number of hours	Funding
1	Detailed analysis of product overview and design	150	$7,500
2	Development of Dapp's foundational components	300	$25,000
3	Rigorous testing and refinement of the Dapp	176	$10800
4	Validation and final delivery of the Dapp	60	$3,000
Total	-	-	$46,300

Maintenance and Upgrade Plans

Post-Delivery Maintenance and Updates: After the product is delivered, continuous monitoring of the Dapp's performance will occur, along with regular updates to improve its features and functionalities. User feedback will be responded to, and necessary changes made to enhance the user experience.

Team

Team Members

Name	Email	Man-hour per month
Alex Lee	[email protected]	176
Liang Huang	[email protected]	176
Zhongju Fan	[email protected]	176
Tian Zhou	[email protected]	176

[Cc-a23187]

Due to job changes, the relevant application rights and interests of Cc-a23187 account need to be transferred to @acfreeman001

[flyworker]

Got it

[JL289]

Hello there @Cc-a23187 &/or @acfreeman001

We'd like to know more about the project, could you please provide more information pertaining to:

• your and your teams development experience? There isn't a whole lot of information to confirm the teams abilities.
• Since you mention needing to research, does this mean this is completely novel to you?
• Marketing and Distribution plans for your application? Doing documentation and guides is one thing, but what tangible efforts will you be able to put toward distribution & marketing?
• There seems to be a discrepancy between summary budget and total budget, a difference of about 10k, could you confirm the right amount? Also grant size will be in token, so please let us know how much in SWAN you would want for this project.

Sorry for the wait, let us know if you have any questions!

Cheers,

[acfreeman001]

1. Our team is a professional Web3 tooling development team and has much experience for Web3 infrastructure development, especially zero-knowledge proof system design and development.
2. Yes, but we have done a lot of preparation. We will investigate and design this system for SWAN chain.
3. The valuable proof market is one of the most important Web3 applications which introduces useful computation and enables the decentralized applications to develop rapidly. It can also promote the development of the SWAN ecosystem. With enough participants, technical service fees can be obtained through smart contracts. Anyway, at first, we will do our best to deisgn and implement this product.
4. There was a little mistake,and the correct quantities are based on the table.And since our previous budget was based on US dollars, now I need to recalculate based on the SWAN quantities as below.

Milestone	Description	Number of hours	Funding
1	Detailed analysis of product overview and design	150	75,000 SWAN
2	Development of Dapp's foundational components	300	250,000 SWAN
3	Rigorous testing and refinement of the Dapp	176	108,000 SWAN
4	Validation and final delivery of the Dapp	60	30,000 SWAN
Total	-	-	463,000 SWAN

[JL289]

Thank you for your answers @acfreeman001.

We will process this new information and get back to you shortly.