Oleg Andreev from Stellar presents Slingshot and ZKVM, a modular suite combining zero-knowledge proofs, confidential transactions, and a programmable virtual machine to enable private, auditable blockchain transactions with customizable smart contract conditions.
Oleg Andreev discusses Slingshot, an umbrella project for Stellar's privacy-focused blockchain infrastructure, and ZKVM, a transaction format that combines confidentiality, verification, and programmability. ZKVM uses zero-knowledge proofs to enable encrypted transactions while maintaining public auditability, operates as a stack-based VM that compiles constraints on-the-fly, and supports multi-asset environments with composable instructions. The system achieves sub-millisecond verification latency per output and supports applications like payment channels, order books, and collateralized loans. ZKVM can function as a sidechain to Stellar or as a private internal ledger, with integration work underway for Stellar consensus protocol and asset interoperability.