Zama Raises $73M to Advance Fully Homomorphic Encryption Applications
This milestone unlocks critical applications in confidential blockchain and AI, paving the way for web-scale deployments such as confidential Large Language Models (LLMs) and encrypted Software-as-a-Service (SaaS).
Zama, an open-source cryptography firm, has secured $73 million in Series A funding to propel the development of applications leveraging fully homomorphic encryption (FHE) technology. FHE enables data processing without the need for decryption, offering significant potential for privacy in blockchain and AI applications. The funding round was led by Multicoin Capital and Protocol Labs, with notable participation from Solana co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko, Filecoin founder Juan Benet, and Ethereum and Polkadot co-founder Gavin Wood.
Founded in 2020, Zama views FHE as a revolutionary advancement in cryptography, often referred to as the "holy grail" due to its ability to enable service providers to interact with user data without exposing it to security risks. Zama's latest offering, fhEVM, stands as a confidential smart contract protocol designed for Ethereum-compatible blockchains. Notably, fhEVM ensures that on-chain data remains end-to-end encrypted throughout processing, safeguarding user privacy.
Crucially, Zama's commitment to performance has resulted in a 20x speed improvement in our FHE scheme since inception, with projections to achieve a 100x enhancement soon. This milestone unlocks critical applications in confidential blockchain and AI, paving the way for web-scale deployments such as confidential Large Language Models (LLMs) and encrypted Software-as-a-Service (SaaS).
Noteworthy projects like Fhenix, Shiba Inu, and Inco have already embraced fhEVM, leveraging its capabilities to unlock confidential transactions, decentralized identities, and enhanced privacy features. Looking ahead, we anticipate exponential FHE innovation, catalyzing advancements in confidential tokens, decentralized identity, gaming, institutional finance, and beyond.
Moreover, Zama envisions FHE's transformative impact extending beyond blockchain and AI, aiming to encrypt the entire internet end-to-end. Our master plan outlines a roadmap to democratize FHE adoption, optimize performance for scalable deployments, integrate with cloud applications, and ultimately establish a new era of internet security through the "HTTPZ" protocol.
As we embark on this ambitious journey, Zama remains steadfast in our commitment to driving innovation, empowering developers, and safeguarding digital privacy in an interconnected world. Together, let us shape a future where privacy is not just a privilege but a fundamental human right, protected by the power of Fully Homomorphic Encryption.
