zk-Rollup hoạt động như thế nào? Phân tích toàn diện về kiến trúc mở rộng Ethereum dựa trên Rollup và cơ chế xác minh của Taiko.

Ethereum mainnet's transaction throughput bottleneck and gas fee fluctuations have always been core obstacles limiting its mass adoption. Layer 2 scaling solutions have thus become a key track in blockchain infrastructure evolution. Among many technical routes, ZK-Rollup (Zero-Knowledge Rollup) is widely regarded as one of the ultimate solutions for Ethereum scaling due to the instant finality and high security brought by cryptographic proofs.

Taiko, as the first Type 1 ZK-EVM project based on the Based Rollup architecture in the Ethereum ecosystem, quickly attracted over $200 million in total value locked (TVL) after mainnet launch. Its core design philosophy is: without introducing a centralized sequencer, return transaction ordering rights to Ethereum L1 validators, thereby inheriting Ethereum mainnet's decentralization and censorship resistance.

Starting from the basic principles of zk-Rollup, we systematically analyze Taiko's scaling architecture—covering the generation process of Validity Proof, transaction packaging and batching mechanisms, decentralized verification structure, and interaction methods with Ethereum mainnet, presenting a technical path from theory to engineering implementation.

Technical Principles of zk-Rollup and Core Mechanism of Validity Proof

From Off-Chain Computation to On-Chain Verification: Basic Working Logic of zk-Rollup

ZK-Rollup is a Layer 2 scaling solution whose core idea is to move the computation and state storage of a large number of transactions off-chain, submitting only the most concise summary data and cryptographic proof to Ethereum mainnet. Specifically, ZK-Rollup packages ("rolls up") thousands of transactions into a batch, executes them off-chain, generates a compact Validity Proof, and submits it for verification to a Rollup smart contract deployed on Ethereum.

The key advantage of this mechanism: Ethereum mainnet does not need to verify each transaction individually; it only needs to verify one cryptographic proof to confirm the correctness of the entire batch. Unlike traditional Optimistic Rollup which relies on a 7-day challenge period, ZK-Rollup achieves instant finality through mathematical proofs. By 2026, ZK proof verification time has been compressed to under 50 milliseconds, and per-transaction cost reduced to below $0.01.

Generation Process of Validity Proof

Validity Proof is the cornerstone of ZK-Rollup security. Its generation process typically includes the following steps:

Step 1: Transaction Execution and State Update. After users initiate transactions on the Layer 2 network, the Rollup node executes these transactions off-chain and calculates changes to the state root. The state root is a hash of account states organized in a Merkle tree, representing the current state of the entire Rollup chain.

Step 2: Proof Generation (Proving). The Prover obtains the transaction batch and its execution trace, generates a Validity Proof using a zero-knowledge proof system (e.g., zk-SNARK or zk-STARK). This proof cryptographically asserts that, given an initial state root, after executing the batch of transactions, the new state root is correctly derived. The proof does not reveal any specific transaction details; it only outputs the conclusion that "the state transition is correct."

Step 3: Proof Submission and On-Chain Verification. The Prover submits the Validity Proof along with the new state root to the Rollup contract on Ethereum mainnet. The on-chain verifier contract verifies the proof's validity through mathematical computation—this process does not require re-executing transactions, and the computational cost is much lower than verifying each transaction individually.

Step 4: State Finalization. Once the proof passes verification, the Rollup contract updates its recorded state root, and that batch of transactions achieves finality at the Ethereum layer. Users can withdraw assets from the Rollup to Ethereum mainnet without waiting for a challenge period.

Taiko adopts a Multi-Proof architecture at the proof generation level, combining two independent systems: SGX (proof based on Trusted Execution Environment) and ZK proofs. No single proof type is considered sufficient—multiple independent proof systems must agree on the state transition to complete final verification. This design significantly enhances system security redundancy.

Transaction Packaging and Batching Mechanism: How to Achieve Efficient Off-Chain Aggregation

Economic Logic of Batching

Batching is the core means for ZK-Rollup to achieve scaling. Each execution of the off-chain virtual machine consumes computational resources, while submitting data to Ethereum mainnet incurs gas fees. The essence of batching is to find the optimal balance between "off-chain computation cost" and "on-chain data publication cost."

ZK-Rollup compresses multiple transactions into one batch, generates a Validity Proof, and submits it to the mainnet at once. Compared to submitting transactions individually, batching significantly reduces the average cost per transaction. Ethereum official documentation indicates that ZK-Rollup uses account indices instead of addresses for data compression, saving about 28 bytes of on-chain data per transaction.

Taiko's Block Proposal and Batching Process

In Taiko's protocol design, the Proposer is responsible for packaging one or more L2 transactions into a block and submitting it to Ethereum L1 by calling the propose method of the Inbox contract. Proposal data is carried via blob-backed derivation sources.

Taiko completed the Shasta upgrade on mainnet in April 2026, which significantly restructured the batching mechanism. The upgraded protocol simplified core contracts to three modules: Inbox, Anchor, and SignalService. Block proposal cost dropped from about 1 million Gas to about 45,000 Gas (a ~22x reduction); proof cost dropped from about 500,000 Gas to about 280,000 Gas (a ~8x reduction).

Decentralized Verification Structure: Taiko's Based Rollup and Multi-Proof Architecture

Based Rollup: Returning Ordering Rights to Ethereum

Traditional Rollup solutions (e.g., Arbitrum, Optimism) rely on centralized sequencers run by the project to package and order transactions. While this architecture improves efficiency, it introduces centralization risks—sequencers can censor transactions, extract MEV, and even become a single point of failure.

Taiko's Based Rollup architecture fundamentally changes this model. In a Based Rollup, transaction ordering is not handled by a project-controlled sequencer but directly by Ethereum L1 validators. The ordering of L2 blocks is determined by Ethereum validators when proposing L1 blocks. This means:

• Maximum decentralization: no additional trust assumptions introduced
• Complete censorship resistance: inherits Ethereum L1 guarantees
• Permissionless participation: anyone can become a block proposer or prover

Taiko thus becomes the first Based Rollup L2 project on Ethereum. As its official documentation states: "No centralized sequencer, no compromise."

Multi-Proof Verification System

Taiko's verification architecture involves multiple roles working together:

Proposer: Submits a proposal containing one or more L2 blocks to Ethereum L1 through the Inbox contract.

Prover: Generates Validity Proofs (SGX + ZK) to confirm the proposed blocks have been correctly executed.

Verifier Contract: On L1, orchestrates multiple sub-verifiers (SGX, ZK) to perform multi-proof verification.

In the protocol after the Shasta upgrade, a successful proof submission directly finalizes the proven range. The Inbox contract checks whether that range links to the current finalized head, writes a checkpoint to SignalService, and updates the finalized proposal ID and block hash. There is no longer a separate "post-proof finalization" step—once a proposal range is proven, it is final.

Type 1 ZK-EVM: Full Ethereum Equivalence

Taiko runs the unmodified Ethereum execution layer (Type 1 ZK-EVM). Every opcode, every precompile, and every tool available on Ethereum can run directly on Taiko without any modification. Developers deploy the same Solidity contracts and use the same toolchains (Hardhat, Foundry, etc.).

This full bytecode-level equivalence makes Taiko one of the most compatible ZK-Rollups in the Ethereum ecosystem. In May 2026, Polygon zkEVM just completed a Type 1 equivalence upgrade, while Taiko has operated with a Type 1 ZK-EVM positioning since mainnet launch.

Interaction Methods with Ethereum Mainnet

Cross-Layer Communication Architecture

Taiko's interaction with Ethereum mainnet is realized through a complete cross-chain communication system. Core components include:

Inbox: An L1 smart contract that manages proposal reception, proof submission, checkpoint recording, and finalization.

Anchor: An L2 smart contract that anchors L1 checkpoints and related metadata to the L2 chain.

Bridge: A cross-chain transfer system for assets and messages between L1 and L2.

SignalService: The underlying cross-chain signal contract that provides Merkle proof-based message verification for the bridge.

Deposit and Withdrawal Process

When a user deposits assets into Taiko, they send assets to the Rollup contract on Ethereum mainnet, which records the deposit event. Taiko's off-chain node listens to this event and mints corresponding assets for the user on L2.

The withdrawal process relies on Validity Proof verification. Once the proof is accepted by the L1 verifier contract, the user can withdraw assets from the Rollup contract without going through the 7-day challenge period required by Optimistic Rollup.

Recent Security Incident and Recovery

In June 2026, Taiko's cross-chain bridge suffered a security incident of approximately $1.7 million, originating from an SGX signing key being publicly exposed on GitHub within the Raiko multi-prover stack. The attacker used the leaked key to forge SGX prover attestation.

Taiko team's response demonstrated the effectiveness of its governance mechanism: the Security Council quickly performed on-chain fixes, confirmed that no user funds were lost, and the bridge assets were fully compensated at a 1:1 ratio. As of July 2, 2026, the bridge service has been restored, and the network is fully operational. Following this incident, the TAIKO token rebounded about 75% within 24 hours, rising to $0.20.

Market Performance and Ecosystem Progress

As of July 3, 2026 (Beijing time), according to Gate market data, Taiko (TAIKO) price is $0.13466, 24-hour trading volume approximately $11.5928 million, market cap approximately $26.8818 million, with neutral market sentiment. The total token supply is 1.0 billion, with a current circulating supply of about 198 million. Over the past 7 days, the increase is 111.36%, over 30 days 39.27%, but over the past year it has decreased by 64.07%.

In terms of ecosystem development, Taiko deployed the ERC-8004 Agent Identity Registry in early February 2026, becoming one of the first L2s to support this standard. In the first month after mainnet launch, over 45,000 AI agents had registered on the ERC-8004 network. Taiko's TVL peaked at $81 million in June, with a monthly growth of 1,000%.

Conclusion

From Validity Proof generation to transaction batching, from decentralized ordering in Based Rollup to multi-proof verification architecture, Taiko provides a Layer 2 scaling model that balances technical completeness and Ethereum alignment. Its Type 1 ZK-EVM ensures zero-cost migration for developers, the Based Rollup design inherits Ethereum mainnet's decentralization guarantees, and the multi-proof architecture enhances system security through redundant verification.

By 2026, the Layer 2 ecosystem has moved from early technical exploration to a mature stage of "modular upgrades plus differentiated competition." ZK-Rollup, with its instant finality and cryptographic security guarantees, is becoming the mainstream technical route for Ethereum scaling. The cost optimization and architectural simplification achieved by Taiko after the Shasta upgrade, as well as its layout in emerging tracks like AI agents, indicate that this Based Rollup scaling solution is moving from theory to scaled practical application.

For readers interested in Ethereum scaling technology and Layer 2 ecosystem evolution, understanding the working mechanism of zk-Rollup and Taiko's architectural choices is an important entry point for grasping the development trends of blockchain infrastructure.

FAQ

Q1: What is the core difference between zk-Rollup and Optimistic Rollup?

zk-Rollup uses Validity Proof to cryptographically ensure the correctness of every transaction, achieving instant finality; Optimistic Rollup assumes transactions are valid by default and relies on fraud proofs during a 7-day challenge period to detect errors. Withdrawals from zk-Rollup require no waiting, while Optimistic Rollup requires a challenge window.

Q2: What does Taiko's "Based Rollup" mean?

Based Rollup refers to a Rollup architecture that returns L2 transaction ordering rights to Ethereum L1 validators. Unlike traditional Rollups that rely on centralized sequencers, Based Rollup inherits Ethereum mainnet's censorship resistance and decentralization guarantees. Taiko is the first L2 project on Ethereum to adopt this architecture.

Q3: How does Taiko's multi-proof system work?

Taiko uses two independent proof systems: SGX (based on Trusted Execution Environment) and ZK. No single proof type is considered final—multiple independent proof systems must agree on the state transition to complete verification. This design significantly enhances system security through redundant verification.

Q4: What changes did Taiko's Shasta upgrade bring?

The Shasta upgrade, deployed on mainnet in April 2026, simplified the protocol's core contracts to three modules: Inbox, Anchor, and SignalService. Block proposal cost dropped from about 1 million Gas to about 45,000 Gas (22x reduction), and proof cost dropped from about 500,000 Gas to about 280,000 Gas (8x reduction).

Q5: How does Taiko interact with Ethereum mainnet?

Taiko interacts with Ethereum mainnet through four core components: Inbox (L1 contract manages proposal and proof submission), Anchor (L2 contract anchors L1 checkpoints), Bridge (cross-chain asset and message transfer), and SignalService (cross-chain signal verification). Deposits are recorded via the L1 contract, and withdrawals rely on Validity Proof verification before direct execution.