ZKM Launches zkMIPS 1.0: A Production-Ready, High-Performance zkVM for Scalable Verifiable Computation
Okland, California, May 6th, 2025, Chainwire
ZKM has officially launched zkMIPS 1.0, the first production-grade release of its MIPS-based zero-knowledge virtual machine (zkVM). This milestone delivers what the industry has lacked to date: a highly performant, stable, and production-grade zkVM, ready for real-world deployment across Ethereum, Bitcoin, and other ecosystems.
Built on the battle-tested MIPS32r2 instruction set architecture, zkMIPS 1.0 departs from the trend of zkVMs built on RISC-V and introduces a more mature, efficient, and purpose-aligned architecture for verifiable computation. The upgrade delivers 6x to 19x performance improvements over zkMIPS 0.3.0, driven by a complete overhaul of the prover architecture, circuit layout, memory consistency model, and precompile integration.
“While many zkVM projects are focused on maximizing visibility, we’ve stayed heads-down on engineering – focused on building the best product we can. Choosing MIPS32r2 over RISC-V was the harder path, but one we saw as necessary to build the optimal zkVM for verifiable computation. With the release of zkMIPS 1.0, we’re confident our architectural foundation will prove itself as the most performant in the industry.” — Ming Guo, Co-Founder and Chief Scientist at ZKM
Key features of zkMIPS 1.0:
- Support for MIPS32r2: Richer instruction set enables denser programs, shorter traces, and fewer constraints.
- Powered by Plonky3 and Koala Prime Field: Unlocks fast, recursive, STARK-based proofs with 31-bit arithmetic.
- Multiset Hashing Memory Model: Simplifies memory checking and improves proving efficiency.
- Area-Optimized Chip Design: Reduces proving cost without sacrificing circuit completeness.
- Precompiles for Heavy Ops: Handles field arithmetic and Keccak in optimized circuits.
Benchmarked for Real-World Loads
Using the zkVM-benchmarks suite, zkMIPS 1.0 consistently delivers massive efficiency gains. Example benchmarks include:
- SHA3-chain (460 iterations): from 1.36 million rows → 68k rows (18.8x improvement)
- Fibonacci (n=58,218): from 223k rows → 14k rows (13.9x improvement)
- SHA2 (2048 bytes): from 22k rows → 2.9k rows (6.6x improvement)
Users can see here for a comprehensive performance comparison with other leading zkVM’s.
Production Ready for Ethereum and Bitcoin
zkMIPS 1.0 is already proving Ethereum mainnet blocks through the Ethereum Foundation’s EthProofs program and underpins GOAT Network, the first Bitcoin L2 using BitVM2 with sustainable native yield. All proof types – Groth16, PLONK, and compressed STARKs – are supported on the ZKM Proof Network, with further integrations underway across AI, Optimistic Rollup upgrades, and more.
“zkMIPS 1.0 provides a solid foundation for the most important use-case of our zkVM to date: enabling native applications on Bitcoin through GOAT Network. GOAT introduces the industry’s first and only sustainable BTC yield mechanism via a unique decentralized sequencer design – and now, with zkMIPS 1.0, it has the best zkVM in the industry powering it.” — Kevin Liu, CEO of ZKM
A Deliberate Architectural Bet
Choosing MIPS32r2 over RISC-V was a calculated engineering decision. While more complex to implement, MIPS allows for shorter programs, fewer circuit constraints, and a more optimal match to zk circuit design. zkMIPS 1.0 is the only fixed-ISA zkVM alternative in a sea of extensible, evolving RISC-V zkVMs.
Developer Ready Toolkit
The release ships with full toolchain support:
- zkm_sdk Rust crate
- mipsel-zkm-zkvm-elf compiler toolchain
- Network proof support and local prover integration
Developers can get started in minutes with the ZKM Docs.
The Future
zkMIPS 1.0 lays the foundation for real-time proving, zk-based Bitcoin scalability, and unified liquidity across chains. With performance proven and integrations live, ZKM is focused on deepening precompile support, improving the cost model, and expanding rollup integrations.
About ZKM:
ZKM builds infrastructure for scalable, trust-minimized verifiable computation. Through zkMIPS – a high-performance, production-ready zkVM – ZKM enables universal off-chain execution that’s standardised, efficient, and composable.
As blockchains fragment and computation demands grow, ZKM provides the foundation for universal execution and unified liquidity across ecosystems.
Contact
For questions or partnerships, users can contact ZKM at contact@zkm.io or visit https://zkm.io