By @arunim_shukla

Hylé Blockchain, launched in 2024, is a French-initiated Layer 1 blockchain designed to transform decentralized applications through zero-knowledge proofs for the “unchained apps" - minimally yet sufficiently on-chain applications. Founded by Sylve Chevet (@sylvechv) and Lancelot de Ferrière le Vayer (@wraitii), it aims to address the limitations of traditional blockchains, such as slow finality, low throughput, high fees, and poor user experience. ​​It aims to be a minimal, efficient settlement layer, focusing on verifying proofs rather than handling extensive on-chain computation, a game-changer for decentralized apps.

Unlike traditional blockchains, which require complete on-chain execution, @hyle_org positions itself as a lean blockchain focused on sequencing and settlement, leveraging ZKPs for verification.

In May 2024, Hylé closed a $2.6 million seed funding round, bringing its total to $3.4 million, led by Framework Ventures, with additional investments from Cherry Crypto, Fabric Ventures, Frst Capital, and Heartcore Capital.

Let’s break it down for clarity.

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Technical Architecture

Hylé is engineered as a “lean blockchain,” focusing on sequencing, data availability, and settlement of ZKPs, rather than extensive on-chain storage and computation. It operates on a proof-of-stake consensus mechanism, ensuring decentralization and energy efficiency, a sustainable alternative to proof-of-work systems. Its modular architecture, inspired by projects like Celestia, separates execution, settlement, and data storage, enhancing scalability and interoperability (Hylé Overview).

Key technical features include:

• Native ZKP Verification: It supports multiple proving systems, including @RiscZero, Groth16, and @SuccinctLabs SP1, and plans to integrate @0xPolygon zkEVM, Cairo, and @NoirLang, offering developers flexibility.
• Pipelined Proving: Decouples proof generation from application execution, allowing asynchronous processing for high performance and theoretical “infinite” scalability.
• Minimal Storage: Only the “source of truth " is stored, keeping nodes lightweight and reducing operational costs, which lowers barriers for node operators.

This minimalist approach aims to solve blockchain trilemma issues—scalability, security, and decentralization—by offloading computation off-chain and verifying proofs on-chain, potentially offering a new paradigm for dApp development.

The protocol's architecture consists of three key components:

1. Sequencing: Determining the order of transactions.
2. Data Availability: Ensuring transaction data is accessible.
3. Settlement: Finalizing state transitions through ZK proofs.

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Pipelined Proving: Hylé's Breakthrough Innovation

One of Hylé's most significant technical contributions is its implementation of pipelined proving, which fundamentally changes how blockchain transactions are processed 3.

Traditional ZK rollups face two major challenges:

• Long proving times requiring batch processing (often hours between state transitions).
• High latency makes parallelization difficult.

Hylé solves these issues by separating transaction sequencing from proof settlement:

• Sequencing Phase: Users submit transaction information, which is immediately ordered and recorded.
• Proving Phase: ZK proofs are generated asynchronously and settled later.

This approach provides several advantages:

• Immediate transaction ordering eliminates front-running risks.
• Proof generation happens outside the critical path, improving performance.
• Enables true parallel execution since sequencing is decoupled from proving.

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Proof Composability

Hylé introduces a novel approach to smart contract interoperability through proof composability. Unlike traditional systems where contract calls are nested (requiring full redeployment if inner contracts change), Hylé allows proofs to reference each other through metadata.

Advantages Over Existing Solutions

1. Compared to Traditional L1 Blockchains

Hylé offers several improvements over conventional Layer 1 blockchains:

• Performance: By moving complex computation off-chain and only settling proofs on-chain, Hylé achieves Web2-like speeds while maintaining blockchain security.
• Flexibility: Developers can write in familiar languages (like Rust) and run on various proving systems (SP1, RISC-V) while maintaining interoperability.
• Cost Efficiency: Minimal on-chain footprint reduces transaction costs compared to complete on-chain execution.

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2. Compared to ZK Rollups

While acknowledging that "rollups are good," Hylé's team believes we can do better. Key differentiators include:

• Native Interoperability: Unlike rollups that rely on bridges, all Hylé applications are natively interconnected.
• Reduced Latency: Pipelined proving eliminates multi-hour waits for proof generation.
• Simplified Development: No need to write verifier contracts for each application.

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3. Compared to Optimistic Rollups

Hylé avoids optimistic rollups' key limitations:

• No dispute periods delaying finality.
• No need for fraud proofs.
• mmediate transaction finality through ZK proofs.

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Use Cases and Applications

Hylé’s ZK-powered design unlocks a wide range of applications, particularly in areas requiring privacy and scalability:

• Decentralized Finance (DeFi): Hyleoof, a zkAMM, exemplifies its use for private strategies and trustless liquidity pools, enhancing DeFi efficiency and privacy.
• Gaming: It supports fully on-chain games with off-chain execution, verified via ZKPs, reducing costs and improving performance, as discussed in their DevCon 2024 presentation.
• Real-World Integration: Hylé aims to leverage real-world data, such as biometric or financial information, facilitating broader blockchain adoption for practical use cases, such as local currencies and contracts.
• Provable Apps: Applications that combine off-chain execution with on-chain verification.

Challenges and Future Outlook

While promising, Hylé faces challenges, including competing with established ecosystems like @Ethereum’s ZK-rollups (e.g., @ZKSync, @Starknet) and ensuring developer adoption. The complexity of ZK technology remains a hurdle even with abstraction efforts. However, with its substantial funding, active development, and focus on community, it seems likely to make significant strides in 2025, potentially launching its main-net later this year and expanding its ecosystem.

This table highlights Hylé’s potential to address key blockchain limitations, offering a fresh approach to scalability and privacy.

Future Outlook

As a relatively new entrant (founded in 2024), Hylé represents an ambitious vision for blockchain architecture. Its technical innovations address fundamental limitations in current systems, particularly around:

• Performance: Through pipelined proving and native ZK verification.
• Interoperability: Via proof composability.
• Developer Experience: By supporting familiar languages and tools.

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The project's success will depend on ecosystem growth and real-world adoption. However, its novel approach positions it as a potential leader in the next generation of blockchain infrastructure.

Key Points

• Hylé Blockchain is a ZK-powered Layer 1, focusing on verifying zero-knowledge proofs for secure, scalable apps.
• As of April 2025, Hylé is still pre-mainnet, with active development.
• It offers advantages like privacy, scalability, and cost efficiency, especially for DeFi, gaming, and identity apps.

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For more articles, visit https://www.hozk.io/journal. Email contact@hozk.io for details about becoming a contributor.