What is Starknet (STRK) - A Comprehensive Overview

How does Starknet work?

Blockchain's purpose is to ensure interactions remain decentralized and trustless. Therefore, off-chain processing—common in scaling solutions—must also maintain trustless validation.

Starknet achieves this through Scalable, Transparent Argument of Knowledge (STARK) proofs, introduced in 2018. Unlike zk-SNARKs, zk-STARKs eliminate reliance on a centralized party for setup, enhancing decentralization.

Sequencers and Provers

Starknet’s STARK-based Layer 2 relies on two core components: sequencers and provers.

Transactions are submitted to Starknet just as they are to Ethereum's mainnet. Sequencers, acting as advanced Ethereum nodes, handle initial processing.

They place transactions into a mempool queue, propose blocks, and assign transactions to these blocks. Failed transactions are excluded. Once finalized, sequencers coordinate with others for approval and forward completed blocks to provers.

Provers validate the blocks created by sequencers. They group blocks, process them in parallel to increase speed, and generate two key outputs: an Execution Trace, which records transaction steps, and a State Diff, which tracks changes in Starknet’s state.

The Execution Trace undergoes an algorithmic check, identifying any errors, such as invalid transactions. A small random sample is then used to verify the STARK proof, which encapsulates thousands of transactions.

Submitting to the Ethereum Mainnet

The STARK proof and State Diff are sent back to Ethereum as a single transaction. This efficient batching method enables Starknet's scalability.

On Ethereum, the node unpacks the transaction to access the proof and State Diff, which are evaluated by the Verifier smart contract. The Verifier confirms proof validity, after which the Starknet Core smart contract updates Starknet’s state.

From there, Ethereum’s standard process continues: adding the transaction to a block and finalizing it across the network.

Why is Starknet key to Ethereum's mass adoption?

Ethereum's current design limits scalability, with high gas fees pricing out many users and challenging Web3's vision of inclusivity. The Starknet blockchain addresses these limitations by operating as a powerful Layer-2 solution.

Starknet processes transactions off-chain generates STARK proofs, and finalizes them in batches on Ethereum, making transactions faster and more cost-efficient.

This approach reduces congestion while maintaining Ethereum's security and decentralization, paving the way for broader accessibility and adoption.

As of November 2024, Imperator is a Mainnet Validator on StarkNet, supporting the network's scalability and decentralization.

The Starknet Stack

The Starknet blockchain stack is the foundation of the Starknet network, offering a powerful framework for scalability, innovation, and customization. It comprises three key components:

1. STARK Proofs: These cryptographic proofs ensure secure and scalable off-chain transaction processing, making the Starknet network both efficient and reliable.

2. Cairo Programming Language: Designed for high-performance computation, Cairo optimizes operations across the Starknet blockchain while supporting complex applications.

3. Native Account Abstraction: Simplifies account interactions, enhancing both user and developer experiences with innovative solutions.

Since the Starknet v0.12.0 Mainnet upgrade, the Starknet blockchain has emerged as the most performant Layer-2 solution by transactions per second (TPS). Unlike EVM-compatible Layer-2s, the Starknet network overcomes legacy constraints, paving the way for unparalleled scalability and flexibility.

This evolution, driven by the Starknet Foundation and its ecosystem, ensures the Stack continually adapts to meet the demands of growing applications.

Benefits of the Starknet Network Stack

The Starknet Stack enables applications to build bespoke Starknet Appchains, delivering several game-changing benefits:

• Enhanced performance: Appchains shield applications from congestion on the public Starknet network, offering faster throughput and an improved user experience.

• Custom features: Developers can implement unique functionalities, such as personalized fee market logic, creating tailored solutions for specific use cases.

• Innovation through experimentation: Appchains serve as testbeds for new features, generating insights that can enhance other Appchains or the public Starknet blockchain.

The Starknet stack offers developers a high-performance framework to innovate and scale, shaping the future of decentralized applications.

Advancing with Cairo Zero, Cairo, and Sierra

Cairo Zero introduced STARK-provable computation in 2020, setting the stage for scalable applications on the Starknet blockchain, though its low-level nature posed challenges. Building on this, Cairo enhances developer accessibility with a Rust-like syntax and modern programming concepts like traits and generics, streamlining contract creation.

Complementing Cairo, Sierra bridges user code and CASM, ensuring all transactions remain provable and protecting the Starknet sequencer from unprovable code that could cause disruptions. Together, these innovations empower the Starknet network to deliver unmatched scalability, efficiency, and flexibility.

The Cairo VM is the cornerstone of the Starknet network, designed to optimize Validity Proofs for scalable and secure transaction processing. Unlike the EVM, the Cairo VM translates computations into polynomial constraints through an Algebraic Intermediate Representation (AIR), enabling efficient proof generation.

This design ensures the Starknet blockchain achieves faster, more reliable transaction validation while maintaining Ethereum’s decentralization and security. Supporting this is CASM (Cairo Assembly), which converts user programs into executable machine code for the Cairo VM, guaranteeing accurate and verifiable outcomes across all inputs.

Starknet Staking

Starknet staking allows token holders to lock their STRK tokens, supporting network security and decentralization. In return, stakers earn rewards, boosting participation in the ecosystem.