Blockstream debuts Simplicity as Bitcoin’s answer to Ethereum’s Solidity

3 weeks ago

Blockstream, the developer of Bitcoin’s layer-2 protocol Liquid and led by Bitcoin cypherpunk Adam Back, has launched Simplicity, a caller astute declaration connection designed for Bitcoin.

According to a Thursday announcement shared with Cointelegraph, Simplicity smart contracts volition beryllium integrated into Liquid. The institution said the determination marks a measurement guardant successful transforming Bitcoin (BTC) from a unafraid store of worth into a programmable instauration for decentralized finance.

The institution besides introduced SimplicityHL, a higher-level implementation of the connection that facilitates easier improvement with accrued abstraction.

A Blockstream typical told Cointelegraph that this mentation of the connection “is present and usable today,” with a web-based integrated improvement situation besides available.

A antithetic attack for a antithetic architecture

Simplicity differs from Ethereum’s Solidity language, mostly owed to the antithetic underlying architectures of the 2 blockchains.

This stems from antithetic approaches and antithetic architectures of the Ethereum and Bitcoin networks, with Solidity developed for the Ethereum Virtual Machine. State is the network’s agreed-upon snapshot of each relationship balances and stored information astatine a fixed block.

Bitcoin utilizes the unspent transaction output (UTXO) architecture, whereas the Ethereum web employs a network-wide state. This quality manifests itself successful however Simplicity astute contracts work, with a Blockstream typical saying that “not relying connected the planetary authorities is simply a large shift.” “Every spot of authorities your declaration needs has to question with the transaction.”

Blockstream’s researchers said Solidity developers volition request to interruption their wont of speechmaking from globally accessible variables and alternatively supply each indispensable accusation astatine each step. In specified a system, 2 astute contracts cannot stock authorities oregon notation the aforesaid variables; everything indispensable beryllium explicitly passed wrong transactions. Still, the firm’s representatives explained that this attack besides has a affirmative impact:

“Even if thing goes wrong, lone your contract’s circumstantial portion of the transaction graph is affected. It’s a antithetic mindset compared to the planetary state, but it yet leads to safer and much contained contracts by design.“

Developers besides won’t beryllium capable to usage recursion oregon unbounded loops, which Blockstream claims aren’t indispensable for onchain logic.

The emergence of domain-specific astute declaration programming languages

Simplicity joins a increasing database of domain-specific astute declaration programming languages.

Noir, a programming connection released successful 2022 for penning and verifying zero-knowledge proofs (ZK-proofs), was adopted successful 2023 by the developers of the upcoming privacy-first Ethereum layer-2 Aztec.

Noir has go a astute declaration programming connection specifically built for privacy-preserving applications that integrate ZK-proofs profoundly into their architecture.

Another illustration is Leo, a astute declaration programming connection that besides creates ZK-proof systems with intimately related syntax and privateness successful mind.

Ethereum’s Vyper is an EVM-compatible connection designed to reduce the onslaught surface, which is present utilized by immoderate starring Ethereum decentralized concern (DeFi) protocols.