The Ecosystem Funding Initiative team is thrilled to announce the recipients of the 2024 Academic Grants Round! This round, we are proud to support 41 projects from researchers and institutions worldwide. These projects address fundamental challenges and opportunities in areas critical to Ethereum’s growth, including cryptography, consensus mechanisms, security, execution, and more.

Budget Summary by Category

Category Number of Projects Total Budget
Client engineering 1 18,500.00 USD
Consensus layer 5 230,400.00 USD
Cryptography, zero-knowledge proofs, and other 11 532,625.00 USD
Cybersecurity and Privacy 7 148,553.48 USD
Economics and Maximal Extractable Value (MEV) 6 262,322.00 USD
Formal Verification 3 231,800.00 USD
P2P networking 2 159,437.00 USD
Society and Regulatory 6 237,500.00 USD
Total 41 1,786,137.48 USD

Client Engineering

Project Name Researcher Name Institution Description
Authenticated and Efficient Inter-Block Event Queries on Ethereum Damiano Di Francesco Maesa University of Pisa This project proposes a novel indexing data structure for efficient and secure blockchain data retrieval, improving dapp performance and client efficiency.

Consensus Layer

Project Name Researcher Name Institution Description
Exploring Automatic Model-Checking of the Ethereum specification Dr. Igor Konnov, Jure Kukovec, Dr. Andrey Kuprianov, Dr. Thomas Pani & Than Hai Tran (Consensys) Independent This exploratory research project seeks to develop methods for automated verification of Ethereum Consensus Layer Specifications. The project establishes translation rules from executable Python specifications to the TLA+ specification language, thus making the specifications amenable to model checking. The current 3SF Ethereum protocol specification serves as the case study.
A Penetration Testing Framework for Identifying Ethereum Incentive Vulnerabilities Rujia Li, Dr. Sisi Duan, Mingfei Zhang & Xueqian Lu Tsinghua University This project represents a pioneering effort to address the challenge of detecting flaws in Ethereum’s incentive mechanisms. By proposing an automated penetration testing framework, the research ensures the integrity and reliability of the Ethereum network by analyzing and mitigating vulnerabilities in its incentive systems.
Censorship Resistance for Ethereum Dr. Kartik Nayak & Sarisht Wadhwa Duke University Censorship resistance is a critical property of decentralized infrastructure. This project explores the use of multiplicity gadgets to increase the cost of censorship significantly while considering application-specific factors that may lead to resilience under diverse scenarios.
Blockchain Foundations - Proof-of-Stake Dionysis Zindros & Aggelos Kiayias Common Prefix This project is part of the upcoming textbook “Blockchain Foundations,” which explores permissionless consensus and blockchains. Developed from years of teaching graduate courses, it offers foundational insights into Proof-of-Stake systems for students.
An Institutional Economic Analysis of Slashing Penalties on Proof of Stake Cryptocurrency Networks Eric Alston & Dr. William Lehr CU Boulder & MIT This project investigates slashing policies across blockchain networks, focusing on governance implications and the diversity of automated procedures. The research emphasizes balancing punitive measures with due process mechanisms to ensure equitable governance structures.

Cryptography, Zero-Knowledge Proofs, and Other

Project Name Researcher Name Institution Description
More Efficient and Scalable Post-Quantum Multi-Signatures Dr. Muhammed Esgin, Assoc. Prof. Ron Steinfeld, Assoc. Prof. John Tsz Hon Yuen, Prof. Joseph Liu Monash University This project develops two post-quantum multi-signature schemes, providing diverse security assumptions and tradeoffs. It contributes to enhancing Ethereum’s scalability and security through advanced cryptographic methods.
Balancing Anonymity and Compliance in Financial and Other Transactions Prof. Anna Lysyanskaya & Scott Griffy Brown University The research focuses on privacy-preserving blueprints, enhancing security and compliance in financial transactions. It aims to enable anonymous credentials while allowing traceability under specific legal circumstances.
Theory and practice of Fiat-Shamir Michele Orrù, Trevor Perrin, Dmitry Khovratovich, Bart Mennink & Mario Marhuenda CNRS This project bridges theoretical and practical aspects of the Fiat-Shamir transform, focusing on integrating the SAFE API into zk-proof frameworks to enhance their adoption.
Formal verification of ZK compilers Qinxiang Cao, Yu Yu, Yucong Hu, Zihan Xu, Youwei Zhong & Xiwei Wu Shanghai Jiao Tong University Zero-knowledge proof has become more widely used in blockchain applications. This project plans to formally verify the security guarantees of ZK compilers to enhance their robustness in blockchain environments.
Scalable Decentralized Sealed-bid Auctions Philipp Jovanovic, Kobi Gurkan, Alireza Kavousi & Andrija Novakovic UCL & Geometry Research Digital auction mechanisms require security, privacy, and scalability. This project aims to develop auctions that satisfy these requirements, enabling secure and efficient asset price discovery in online marketplaces.
Post-Quantum Signatures with SNARK Aggregation Matthieu Rivain & Thibauld Feneuil CryptoExperts This project designs and implements SNARK-friendly post-quantum signatures to enable efficient and generic aggregation schemes, enhancing Ethereum’s ecosystem with advanced cryptographic tools.
Design of Symmetric Cryptographic Primitives Lorenzo Grassi Ponos Technology This project focuses on designing cryptographic primitives for ZK applications, enabling privacy-preserving computation verification and enhancing the security of Ethereum rollup solutions.
Cryptanalysis of Symmetric Cryptographic Primitives Lorenzo Grassi Ponos Technology This project analyzes the efficiency and security of symmetric cryptographic primitives used in ZKPs, contributing to the reliability and scalability of Ethereum-based solutions.
ZK-ARCKIT Prof. Albert Rubio, Asst. Prof. Miguel Isabel & Clara Rodriguez Universidad Complutense de Madrid This project develops tools to analyze, verify, and optimize polynomial constraint systems used in ZK protocols, aiming to enhance their usability and performance.
Formal Verification of the c-kzg Library Dr. Eddy Westbrook, Dr. Than-Hai Tran & Roberto Saltini Galois & Consensys This project supports EIP-4844 (Proto Danksharding) by formally verifying the c-kzg library, a crucial component for Ethereum’s scaling advancements.
Building Practical and Secure Blockchain-Based AI Zhipeng Wang, Jiahao Sun & Sylvie Zhang Imperial College London & FLock.io This project integrates economic modeling and ZKPs to enhance blockchain-based AI frameworks, ensuring privacy and security in machine learning applications.

Cybersecurity and Privacy

Project Name Researcher Name Institution Description
Encoding Accountability: The governance of blockchain security Dr. Kelsie Nabben & Dr. Primavera De Filippi BlockchainGov This project focuses on industry-academic collaboration to advance blockchain security practices. It leverages foundational academic analysis to produce impactful results, linking Ethereum’s community and blockchain security practices.
Data-Driven Time-Series Fuzzing Dr. Fudong Wu, Xiaoyu Liu, Dr. Jialing Fan & Dr. Jiaqi Gao Beihang University This project develops fuzzing methods for improving Ethereum network security by addressing vulnerabilities in its peer-to-peer network.
Unraveling Blind Message Attacks Dr. Wenrui Diao & Prof. Xiaokuan Zhang Shandong University & George Mason University This project addresses security gaps in Web3 authentication methods by investigating and mitigating vulnerabilities in Blind Message Attacks, enhancing Ethereum’s ecosystem.
CANARY: Change Analysis System Dr. Anindya Maiti, Scott Seidenberger, Alec Sokol, Khoi Trihn, Tristan Bony & Koy Wilson University of Oklahoma The CANARY project creates a real-time monitoring system for Ethereum’s P2P network to identify anomalies and ensure network security.
Optimal Counter-Attack Synthesis Asst. Prof. Yu Feng, Hanzhi Liu & Hongbo Wen UC Santa Barbara This project strengthens defenses against on-chain exploits by synthesizing optimal counter-attacks and mitigating vulnerabilities in Ethereum smart contracts.
Training an EVM-native GPT Dr. Kaihua Qin, Liyi Zhou, Javier García Arredondo, Weilin Li & Dr. Arthur Gervais Zoro AG This project develops GPT-based models for Ethereum transaction analysis, enabling real-time intrusion detection and dynamic security strategies.
SEADRAGON Dr. Anindya Maiti, Scott Seidenberger, Alec Sokol, Khoi Trihn, Tristan Bony & Koy Wilson University of Oklahoma SEADRAGON enhances Ethereum’s node security through advanced overlay networks, ensuring privacy and operational resilience.

Economics and Maximal Extractable Value (MEV)

Project Name Researcher Name Institution Description
Ethereum Blockspace Derivative Frameworks Shouqiao Wang Columbia Business School This project develops frameworks for Ethereum blockspace derivative markets, addressing transaction fee volatility and enhancing market efficiency.
Liquidity Transformation in Staking Economies Prof. Alfred Lehar & Christine Parlour University of Calgary This research analyzes incentive structures and systemic risks in Ethereum’s staking economies, contributing to a robust economic model.
Principal-Agent Problem in Liquid Staking Apostolos Tzinas Common Prefix This project investigates governance dynamics and security trade-offs in liquid staking protocols like Lido and Rocketpool.
Blockchain Geometry Dr. Vijay Mohan Independent This project develops analytical tools for visualizing blockchain behavior in equilibrium, integrating economic and computational perspectives.
MEV-Boost Auctions Mengqian Zhang & Fan Zhang Yale University This project enhances efficiency and robustness in Ethereum’s MEV-boost auctions, introducing novel auction mechanisms to mitigate inefficiencies.
Sound Foundations for Client Diversity Javier Ron & Prof. Martin Monperrus KTH Royal Institute of Technology This project improves fraud-proof mechanisms and promotes client diversity within Ethereum’s ecosystem.

Formal Verification

Project Name Researcher Name Institution Description
Accelerating SMT Solving for Large Bit-Vectors Prof. Clark Barrett, Aina Niemetz & Mathias Preiner Stanford University This project advances SMT solvers for efficient reasoning about large bit-vectors, addressing Ethereum’s verification challenges.
Towards an Executable Formal Model of EVM and Yul in Lean Prof. Rodrigo Ribeiro, Dr. Julian Sutherland, Fabricio Paranhos & Andrei Burduşa Nethermind This project formalizes the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) in Lean, providing tools for reasoning about smart contracts and execution environments.
SOPA (SOund and yet Precise Gas Analysis of EVM Bytecode) Prof. Elvira Albert, Prof. Albert Rubio, Pablo Gordillo, Alejandro Hernández-Cerezo, Jesús Correas & Guillermo Román-Díez Universidad Complutense de Madrid This project develops a gas analysis toolkit for Ethereum smart contracts, ensuring precise and sound resource estimations.

P2P Networking

Project Name Researcher Name Institution Description
Refinement-Based Analysis of P2P Protocols for Ethereum Prof. Panagiotis Manolios, Prof. Cristina Nita-Rotaru, Ankit Kumar & Max Von Hippel Northeastern University This project formalizes the correctness of Ethereum’s P2P protocols, analyzing their robustness against attacks.
Optimistic Peer-to-Peer Networks Dr. Chen-Da Liu-Zhang, Dr. Christian Matt & Søren Eller Thomsen Primev This project explores efficient peer-to-peer network designs for blockchains, improving bandwidth and latency.

Society and Regulatory

Project Name Researcher Name Institution Description
Stanford Journal of Blockchain Law & Policy Steve Nam Stanford University Founded in 2018, the Stanford Journal of Blockchain Law & Policy addresses underserved legal themes in blockchain law and policy, offering balanced perspectives and innovative solutions.
Open-Source Software Development and Community Dynamics Dr. Jiasun Li & Dr. Mariia Petryk George Mason University This project investigates open-source projects to draw lessons for blockchain governance, focusing on community dynamics and project success factors.
Execution and Finality in Ethereum from a Legal Perspective Dr. Mikolaj Barczentewicz Independent This project examines transaction settlement and execution in Ethereum under EU financial regulation, addressing gaps in legal frameworks.
Efficient Status List for the EVM Ecosystem Felix Hoops, Burak Öz & Prof. Florian Matthes Technical University of Munich This project proposes decentralized identity mechanisms for Ethereum users, addressing privacy and interoperability challenges.
USSD for DeFi Accessibility in Kenya Dr. Dennis Kaburu Jomo Kenyatta University This project enhances DeFi accessibility for USSD users in Kenya, addressing technological barriers to blockchain adoption.
The Ethereum Social Layer (ESL) Project Asst. Prof. Paul Dylan-Ennis Independent This project examines Ethereum’s evolving social dynamics and potential attack vectors within its community and governance structures.
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