Kakarot: A highly followed innovative zkEVM project

Kakarot zkEVM is an Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) implementation written in the Cairo language. Cairo is a Turing-complete language associated with CairoVM, which uses polynomials and the ZK-STARK proof system to achieve verifiable computation.

As a zkEVM, Kakarot is characterized by its ability to generate provable transactions and blocks. Built on top of CairoVM, every transaction executed on Kakarot has provability. This allows developers to deploy EVM applications on it while enabling users to interact with these applications using familiar tools.

In addition, Kakarot plans to provide interoperability with the Starknet protocol, bringing greater composability to protocols in areas such as DeFi and GameFi.

Development Roadmap

The Kakarot project started in October 2022, aiming to create a zkEVM with less than 10,000 lines of code in an open-source manner. This goal was achieved in just six months. The project plans to launch a testnet by the end of summer 2023.

The development roadmap of Kakarot zkEVM is divided into three stages:

1. Kakarot zkEVM on Starknet: Introduces EVM to Starknet, allowing developers to directly deploy Solidity contracts on Starknet and use familiar tools for development and interaction.

2. Kakarot x Madara - L3 zkEVMs: Integrating Kakarot and Madara to achieve L3 zkEVMs, and even higher-level scalability. This will allow teams to deploy their own zkEVM application chains and settle transactions on Starknet using validity proofs.

3. Kakarot x Madara - Type 1 zkEVM: By further integrating Kakarot and Madara, we achieve Type 1 zkEVM. This requires writing Ethereum consensus rules in Cairo within the Madara x Kakarot full node and switching from Pedersen Merkle Patricia Trie to Keccak MPT.

Team Background

The core team of Kakarot was born from an intensive development event in Lisbon, where about ten people built a zkEVM prototype in a week. Currently, with the support of the Starknet Foundation and Onlydust, Kakarot has over 40 unique contributors.

Core members include:

• Elias Tazartes: Co-founder and CEO, focusing on blockchain engineering and full-stack development.
• Clément Walter: Co-founder and CTO, with a diverse background as a scientist, engineer, and entrepreneur.

Financing Situation

Kakarot has completed its pre-seed round of financing, with the specific amount undisclosed. Investors include institutions such as Starkware and LambDa, as well as angel investors like Vitalik Buterin, Ledger co-founder Nicolas Bacca, and ZAMA co-founder and CEO Rand Hindi.

Project Advantages and Challenges

Kakarot, as the zkEVM implementation on Starknet, has the following advantages:

1. Link Starknet and the Ethereum ecosystem to lower the development threshold.
2. Combine the security and low-cost advantages of Ethereum.
3. Gain support from Vitalik Buterin and StarkWare.
4. Higher levels of composability can be achieved in the future.

However, Kakarot also faces some challenges:

1. The team is relatively small, with limited resources.
2. Compared to other mature zkEVM projects, the brand awareness is lower.
3. Development is closely related to the Starknet ecosystem and has certain dependencies.

The Kakarot project is currently in its early stages, with the testnet set to launch soon. As an innovative zkEVM solution, Kakarot has the potential to play an important role in the Starknet ecosystem, but its ultimate success will require time to verify.