Mina’s upcoming upgrade is set to mark a pivotal moment for the protocol, bringing added ZK programmability. This means ZK smart contracts, zkApps, layer two’s, bridges, and end-users.

The main difference between Mina and other ZK projects working towards ZK programmability is again this foundational ‘Proof of Everything’ architecture which is completely unique to Mina. Those who want to build in an ecosystem of living, composable proofs that are infinitely scalable and can be instantly verified by anyone (forever) should most likely choose to build on Mina.  

The upgrade moves smart contract execution off-chain, and leaves verification on-chain, addressing many of the most common blockchain infrastructure challenges, such as data constraints, scalability issues, and high gas costs.

Furthermore, it means we can finally start “feeding” this Proof of Everything with verifiable data and compute, which can be extended and reused in other applications. The real magic happens when you look beyond attesting to individual statements of facts, and instead start thinking of how to harness the power of massive collaborative computation.

Read more in our ‘Everything You Need to Know’ blog post here. 

This upgrade, named the Berkeley upgrade, has been in the works since Mina’s Mainnet launched in 2021 as a pioneer of zero knowledge (ZK) technology. Its unique ZK-native architecture addressed the key bloating problem, allowing anyone to download the chain’s history proof in just 22 kilobytes (KB) and run a node to secure the network quickly without replaying the entire chain transactional history. This enabled true scalable decentralization while unlocking unique use cases, like running a validator node inside your browser.

The Berkeley upgrade primes the Mina network for the next phase in our digital world, addressing the need for an internet where users can verify proofs of information, ensuring data validity and reliability. It will take its native ZK capabilities to another level—to serve as a universal proof layer—by aggregating proofs of information from both Web3 and Web2 realms and settling and verifying them to Mina’s layer 1.

Community support has been paramount to the success of pre-upgrade testing, and many ecosystem partners have been working diligently to prepare for this major upgrade. 

Testworld Mission 2.0 is a key testing initiative in which hundreds of community members have come together to push the network to its limits. The initiative covered 4 different stages, including: end to end zkApp testing, external security auditing, network performance testing, and upgrade mechanism testing. 

Finally, the team also upgraded Mina’s Devnet environment, a network designed for testing and experimentation, providing ecosystem participants the opportunity to test Berkeley features before the mainnet upgrade. 

You can follow Mina Protocol’s key channels below: 

• @MinaProtocol on X for regular updates
• Join the Discord server for technical support
• Find an overview of what to expect on the day of the mainnet upgrade here

You can follow Mina Protocol’s key channels below: 

• @MinaProtocol on X for regular updates
• Join the Discord server for technical support
• Find an overview of what to expect on the day of the mainnet upgrade here