Aztec has launched Tierra, an upgrade for the privacy-focused Ethereum layer-2 network that addresses known vulnerabilities, including a critical issue discovered in V5. The Aztec Foundation said Tuesday that Tierra carries the designation Alpha V6. The foundation said the upgrade strengthens security, formally verifies the proving system and accelerates deposits from Ethereum. The launch also introduces updated branding.
The security changes include an AI-powered testing harness and formal verification of core cryptographic components. Formal verification uses mathematics to establish that code operates as intended. Crypto developers are pursuing stronger code security as AI tools make finding vulnerabilities easier.
Aztec said standard devices now generate client-side proofs for private transactions in about one second, twice as fast as before. Aztec said the new messaging architecture reduces delivery times from Ethereum to Aztec from an average of two minutes to as little as 12 seconds. The shorter delivery times accelerate deposits and cross-chain activity.
Aztec operates as a decentralized layer-2 network with more than 3,000 validators and supports fully programmable private smart contracts. Aztec says the network has neither privileged viewing keys nor a centralized sequencer, preventing any single operator from inspecting or controlling user activity. Aztec Foundation co-founder and CEO Zac Williamson said privacy should be embedded in the network rather than depend on requests or trust in another party.
The upgrade accompanies private applications covering payments, trading, AI and social activity. Aztec Labs built zk.money, a private payments and savings application that the team revived this year. Tierra's faster messaging lets zk.money users deposit directly from any Ethereum wallet without complicated bridging.
The application lineup includes Galactica for private AI inference and Nemi for private perpetuals trading. Nulo provides a private browser wallet. Rolling Chat provides a private message board based on Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin's experiments with Aztec.
The launch comes during renewed efforts to expand privacy on Ethereum. Buterin has outlined plans for a cryptographic world computer and advocated sharply reducing the cost of quantum-safe privacy. A separate team has spun out a for-profit company to advance institutional adoption of privacy. Aztec previously raised $17 million to develop the network. Aztec is pursuing a future in which privacy becomes a standard Ethereum feature rather than an optional addition.