A Proof of Space is a protocol that allows a prover to convince a verifier that he has a minimum specified amount of space (ie, used storage).
In Filecoin we are interested in proving useful space, that is storage space that can be used to keep real-world data. Therefore, we want the advice A of the PoS to encode some real data D, instead of just being a random incompressible sequence of bytes. This is the informal new property we are interested in each time we will talk about Proof of Useful Space.
A more formal way to capture the security requirements of the Filecoin decentralized storage network is using a proof of useful space that is actually a Proof of Replication.
Informally, this means that in addition to the space hardness property seen before for a PoS , the replica (that is the advice that now contains encoded data) has the extraction property. In other words, there is an extraction algorithm that can recover the original data from the interaction with a successful prover during the execution phases.
Please see the related Open Problem Statement, the Proof of Space report, and the Proof of Replication report for further details.
The solutions proposed for this RFP will address our published open problems on Proof of Space and Useful Space. Please review the problems in detail for requirements and constraints.
The goal of this RFP is to stimulate improvements to the Proof of Space constructions used in Filecoin and other Web3 protocols. We are funding research that addresses any of the eight Open Problems listed in the above Open Problem Statement:
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Problem 1: Simple graph-labeling based PoS in the time model
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Problem 2: Graph-labeling based PoS in the cost model
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Problem 3: Fewer communication rounds for repeated audits
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Problem 4: Proof of Useful Space from hash-based PoS
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Problem 5: Proof of Useful Space with data updatability
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Problem 6: Tight hash-table based PoS construction
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Problem 7: Incremental cost for parameters upgrades
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Problem 8: Verifiable capacity-bound functions
Successful applications will include an explicit formulation of the objectives they propose to deliver, a description of the use-cases for which their solution is optimized, and a description of how the performance or correctness of the solution will be demonstrated and evaluated relative to the current state-of-the-art.
Solutions (or impossibility results) should take the form of a scientific paper or technical report. Additional follow-on funding is available to support the preparation of submissions to open-access journals and conference proceedings, including travel and presentation costs.
Rolling: we will be reviewing applications in batches corresponding to calendar months. The call will close on August 30, 2021 or earlier if awarded.
We expect the technical depth of the work to be at the level of a PhD student. We suggest that a team of one PI and one PhD part time for 9-12 months or one PI and one postdoctoral researcher part time for 6-8 months is appropriate for most problems.
Applicants may build a collaborative project with researchers from multiple institutions if desired.
- Recommended expertise: Mathematicians and/or Computer Scientists familiar with Applied Cryptography, Codes, Information Theory, Proof of Storage
Up to $50,000 USD per proposal. Possibility of up to 20% paid in FIL.
60% upon award and 40% on completion (adjustable to accommodate institutional requirements).
Irene Giacomelli (@irenegia) and Luca Nizzardo (@lucaniz). We encourage you to reach out to [email protected] if you are considering applying or have any questions.
Submit your proposal using our application management system at https://grants.protocol.ai/.
Results are to be released as open source under the Permissive License Stack (Dual License Apache-2 + MIT).