“If Monero does not adopt ZK-snarks they will lose to Zcash eventually…”
The idea of Monero using Zcash’s own technology and science to beat Zcash would be a Shakespearean tragedy.
More strategic partnerships, more bridges, more distribution, a better UI/wallets can counteract this from becoming a reality though I do believe both coins can co-exist. To be clear: I support both projects though I loathe the endless barrage of FUD and mudslinging at Zcash by the Monero community.
Any thoughts on this from our community, ECC, ZOMG and ZF?
Monero is discussing replacing ring signatures with Halo2 ZKPs (I think). One of the lead devs on it has Halo2 experience with another project IIRC. {If that happens} I’m not technical enough to say that makes their privacy protocol superior to Zcash, or vice versa, but it does remove the “weakest link” supposedly.
Wallet UX + IRL use cases is big. Monero.com + cakepay has a great UX. Cakewallet as a multi-currency wallet has great UX. Both have a lot of functionality and IRL use cases.
Idea: I’d love to see some community collaboration around Ywallet and/or Zingo!. I.e. UX design, marketing, partnerships, etc.
Imagine if we funded some independent community members to support @hanh or @zancas with these efforts, we could essentially create a competitor to Cakewallet as the ultimate “privacy coin” wallet.
But, as a community, we really would have to get behind it…
We can agree to disagree because I’m unwilling to bet against the team and strategy behind Zcash. I also disagree because I believe both projects can mutually co-exist. BTW - this doesn’t mean I am rooting against Monero. I am rooting for privacy as a human right in any and all forms.
Indeed, Zcash has the technical advantage presently and I remain hopeful ECC/ZOMG/ZF can execute on its product and distribution strategy (i.e. Avalanche bridge and others, transition to POS, ZSAs, improved UI/Wallets, and so on) which I believe in. My opinion, worth two cents, I know
I think Monero adopting zk-SNARKs would be great for privacy overall and for Zcash in the long run. I’ve long seen Monero as winning on the usability and adoption fronts, so leveling the playing field with regards to privacy tech would help incentivize Zcash to make greater strides in UX too.
The cryptographic engineering teams in ECC and ZF are unparalleled so unleashing their protocol design and implementation skills in a competition for the best UX would turn Zcash into an amazing product! It would be awesome if we could join forces to build things like easy-to-integrate libraries, in-browser wallets, and things like that, that work well with both Zcash and Monero.
I believe you’re right. In the end, 1) Monero adopting zk-SNARKs would be great for privacy overall and for Zcash in the long run; 2) the amazing teams at ECC and ZF will rise to the occasion to build the best UX for Zcash.
I can only imagine ECC/ZF/etc. genuinely believes giving users choice is good for the users and good for dealing with regulators. I simply do not know. But indeed, z-to-z is the killer app known as private money and Zcash presently has the best technology in existence for this use case.
