Gigachain Protocol Revolutionizes Blockchain Scalability
Hong Kong, China, May 23rd, 2025, Chainwire – The Gigachain Protocol introduces advanced, high-computation capabilities that were previously unattainable with conventional blockchain systems.
Gigachain Labs has unveiled a new Layer 1 blockchain designed for genuine scalability, with initial support from Presto Labs and incubation by the Telos Foundation. This groundbreaking protocol, referred to as Gigachain, employs a SNARK-based framework that facilitates trustless parallel execution. It stands out as the first system to enable decentralized, permissionless, and non-conflicting concurrent transaction processing, all while upholding security standards and ensuring state consistency.
Traditional blockchain systems typically process transactions in a sequential manner, necessitating that each validator handle the total throughput of the chain. This limitation has significantly hindered the performance of various blockchains, creating challenges in achieving true scalability beyond basic transactions. In response, many chains have turned to off-chain solutions, often compromising decentralization, security, and user experience.
With its approach to trustless parallel execution, Gigachain shifts the paradigm of how the blockchain ecosystem evaluates throughput. The current emphasis is predominantly on transaction speed, commonly represented as transactions per second (TPS). However, Gigachain expands this concept to include transaction weight, measured in Instructions per Second (IPS), which gauges the computational capacity of a blockchain. Gigachain is engineered to exceed 61 billion IPS, marking a more than 500-fold enhancement over multi-thread execution models like that of Solana, and an astonishing 10,000-fold increase compared to Ethereum’s fully sequential model. The use of zk-SNARKs allows Gigachain to facilitate decentralized and parallel transaction processing, paving the way for a new era of blockchain performance, scalability, and application possibilities.
The Gigachain protocol organizes transactions into non-conflicting batches that can be executed and verified in parallel, distributing the execution load across numerous decentralized entities. These batch proofs are then consolidated into a single proof that validates the entire block. This innovative method not only trustlessly shares the execution burden but also eliminates redundant processing within the network, enhancing overall blockchain throughput without sacrificing decentralization.
“Current discussions on blockchain scaling tend to focus on theoretical TPS figures, overlooking the fundamental issues,” stated Alberto Garoffolo, CTO of Gigachain. “Computational processes in the real world operate in parallel across millions of machines and cores. For blockchain to scale effectively, it cannot adhere to a sequential model. Gigachain finally makes trustless parallel execution a reality.”
By addressing the challenges of decentralized computational scaling, Gigachain positions itself as a vital component of the future landscape of blockchain applications. The project is spearheaded by former leaders from IOHK and the Telos Foundation venture arm, including Alberto Garoffolo, who has held significant roles such as the Head of ZK at Telos, CTO at Horizen, and Head of Engineering (Midnight) at IOHK—recognized for his innovative contributions to zk-SNARKs, recursive proofs, and decentralized blockchain scaling strategies. The team also comprises technical experts like Paolo Tagliaferri, Ljubiša Isaković, Marco Olivero, Daniele Di Tullio, and Momčilo Miladinović.
Garoffolo introduced Gigachain’s protocol during a live event at zkSummit13 on May 12, 2025.
About Gigachain
Gigachain is a pioneering Layer 1 blockchain specifically designed for scalable, trustless parallel execution. Utilizing a unique SNARK-based architecture, it is the first decentralized protocol capable of achieving permissionless, non-conflicting concurrent transaction processing without compromising state consistency or security. By fundamentally rethinking execution, Gigachain distributes computational tasks across decentralized participants and eliminates unnecessary processing within the network, leading to significant performance enhancements for complex workloads. Supported by Presto Labs and incubated by the Telos Foundation, Gigachain is led by a team of trailblazers in zero-knowledge cryptography and blockchain infrastructure from IOHK, Telos, and Horizen. The testnet for Gigachain is anticipated to launch in 2026, with the mainnet expected to follow in 2027.
