Purpose
brainbot is sharing this update regarding the grant of 205,405 sDAI from Shutter DAO 0x36 received on 17 December 2024. It covers use of funds, activities and accomplishments in December 2024.
Highlights
Although December was a bit slow - due to brainbot employees and our partners taking holidays - brainbot make excellent progress in key areas:
Development:
- Shielded Trading on Gnosis Chain: We achieved a major milestone: Shutter is now officially part of the Nethermind release on Gnosis Chain.
- Shutter API: We launched and tested the Shutter API on Chiado testnet, and we prepared detailed documentation for developers.
- Shielded Trading on Ethereum L1: We collected feedback from partners and made improvements to our proposals for both an out-of-protocol solution and an in-protocol solution for implementing encrypted mempools on Ethereum L1.
Communications:
- Campaign for the Ethereum L1 Whitepaper: Weâre starting planning a campaign to position Shutter and its partners as the architects of Ethereumâs transformationâunveiling a roadmap for its first encrypted mempool and long-term plans to make it a fully fair and censorship-resistant ecosystem.
Use of Funds
Values
| Category | August 2024 | September 2024 | October 2024 | November 2024 | December 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dev | $97.8K | $98.5K | $96.1K | $97.4K | $100.3K |
| Biz Dev | $25.0K | $28.2K | $28.2K | $25.6K | $24.2K |
| Other | $34.6K | $22.6K | $22.0K | $24.0K | $29.5K |
| R&D | $23.6K | $32.1K | $32.2K | $40.2K | $28.8K |
| Marketing | $17.6K | $21.9K | $25.9K | $25.1K | $42.0K |
| Admin | $16.5K | $21.4K | $24.6K | $24.3K | $18.8K |
| Unused * | $12.0K | $2.0K | $10.0K | -$9.0K | -$17.0K |
| Legal | $6.3K | $6.4K | $6.4K | $6.3K | $6.3K |
| Total | $233.4K | $233.0K | $233.0K | $233.0K | $233.0K |
- Cumulative âUnusedâ funds are -$2,000.
Percentages
Team
Current FTEs working on Shutter
1 CEO
1 Finance & Admin
2 Business Development
1.5 Marketing & Communications
5 Protocol Developers
1 Researcher
0.5 Lawyer
Changes
Fred LĂźhrs, protocol developer, left brainbot in December 2024 after 5 years with the team. He is now working at Phylax Systems, building verifiable embedded hack prevention. He continues to contribute to Shutter, providing advice on strategic and technical topics.
Shielded Trading on Gnosis Chain
Release & Stability
We achieved a major milestone in December 2024: Shutter is now officially part of the Nethermind release on Gnosis Chain.
We are actively supporting Nethermind and the validators to resolve remaining peer-to-peer communication issues and ensure smooth operations.
Next Milestone
We continued the conceptual work towards the next milestones on Gnosis Chain:
- Explored an alternative path forward proposed by the Nethermind team using Smart Account validation.
- Investigated how to enhance accountability mechanisms for validators by integrating Force Choice Inclusion Lists (FOCIL), which would introduce attestations of decryption key releases by the Keypers.
Explorer
We continue to refine the Shutter Explorer, focusing on: usability, accuracy, and better insights into encrypted transaction inclusion.
Shutter API
Development
We made rapid progress on developing the Shutter API, which is a foundational tool for dApp developers to integrate Shutter encryption into their projects, enabling them to use Shutter commit-and-reveal encryption mechanism for real world applications.
Testing
We launched and tested the Shutter API on Chiado testnet. We are evaluating performance, reliability, and scalability.
We prepared detailed documentation to facilitate a smooth onboarding experience for developers.
Dog Food Release
We plan to release the Shutter API and documentation to Shutter ecosystem partners in January 2025. This release will allow us to receive feedback and suggestions for improvement from a small group of trusted developers who are building a diverse range of dApps, including: auctions, gifts, games, and more.
Public Release
We plan to release the Shutter API to the public in March 2025. This release will include comprehensive features and developer support, making it accessible for a wide range of use cases.
Strategic Research
Ethereum L1 - Out of Protocol Solution
We continued to develop our detailed vision for an out-of protocol threshold encrypted mempool for Ethereum L1. We received more feedback from our partners and incorporated it into the document. We plan to publish the document mid to end of January.
We also prepared a shorter version of the document for publication in the [Ethereum Research] (https://ethresear.ch/) forum. This short version will serve as an overview of our vision and as a means to receive feedback from the broader community.
Ethereum L1 - In Protocol Solution
We continued work on our in-protocol encrypted mempool solution. Previously, we only used the silent setup threshold encryption scheme. Now, we also outlined a generic solution, in which the exact mechanism of encryption and decryption is not specified. This would allow plugging in the best fitting encryption mechanism to our solution (e.g., delay encryption, decryption via TEE etc.). In the future, we plan to write and publish an EIP outlining the design for an in-protocol encrypted mempool for Ethereum L1.
Advanced Cryptographic Techniques
We began documenting our practical idea for an anti-collusion mechanism for Shutter, in which proposer first has to commit to including a transaction before it can be decrypted.
Developer Relations
Shutter Network Members
We provided support and guidance to Shutter DAO 0x36 members on tasks, including:
- Evaluating Treasury Management Proposals from Yelay and Avantgarde
- Finalizating of the Extension of the Shutter DAO 0x36 Keyper Set
- Concluding the Grant to Artis for Market Making Services
Conferences
Ethereum ZĂźrich
Andreas applied to speak about the practical anti-collusion mechanism mentioned above - ie. a proposer first has to commit to including a transaction before it can be decrypted.
Loring applied to speak about commit-and-reveal encryption in real world applications, such as auctions, gifts, games, and governance.
Marketing & Communications
We hosted several livestreams and published/supported blog posts:
- Hosted video livestream on Twitter on Dec 2: Better MPC: Addressing the Threshold Trust Assumption in Refreshing New Ways, in which we discussed collusion in threshold cryptographic schemes and how to prevent it in particular with respect to MEV protection. Guests included Nillion, TU Darmstat, Phala Network, and brainbot.
- Published blog post on Dec 5: ShutterTEE: Layered Security via Meshing Threshold Cryptography and State-Of-The-Art TEE, which explained Shutterâs collaboration with PolyCrypt to develop Shutter TEE.
- Co-promotion with Nethermind and Gnosis to recognized milestone of Shutter being included in main Nethermind release to all its validators
- Nethermind release notes
- Nethermind blog post
- Co-promotion tweets
- Hosted video livestream on Twitter on Dec 19: Going Full Force: Shielded Trading on Gnosis Chain Now in Nethermindâs Main Release with guests from Gnosis, Nethermind, and brainbot
- Luis Bezzenberger joined livestream hosted by EigenPhi on Dec 19: An Offer Builders Canât Refuse: Searcher Integration
Public Relations
We begin our 2-month trial engagement Luna PR (which was mentioned in the Nov update):
- Pitched and secured a media commentary for Luis Bezzenberger on December 2024 in Crypto News: Experts: AI Agents Will âSuperchargeâ Crypto in 2025
- Crafted a media narrative for Shutter
- Performed media training for Shutter spokespeople
- Setting up a process for newsjacking to increase Shutterâs visibility in the media
- Development a media kit for Shutter
Campaign Planning for Ethereum L1 Whitepaper
We started planning a campaign to position Shutter and its partners as the architects of Ethereumâs transformationâunveiling a roadmap for its first encrypted mempool and long-term plans to make it a fully fair and censorship-resistant ecosystem. Co-orchestrated with partners, the campaign will include impactful press releases, targeted media outreach, engaging infographics, educational content, and several live stream discussions. These efforts aim to rally widespread support, spark meaningful discussion, and amplify engagement for Shutterâs future launches and initiatives.
Community Engagement
We engaged the Shutter community via social media and community platforms:
- Held the vote for Retro Rewards Epoch 3 and paid out rewards of 40,000 SHU to the contributors
- Initiated Retro Rewards Epoch 4 and began the vote
- Shared the monthly Community Update
Website
We completed the About page and continued other web pages with Relate Studio.