• Blockstream, a leading Bitcoin infrastructure company, has announced a formalized Blockstream Research team.
• The team is working on various projects such as Simplicity, Miniscript, Elements Script and Cross Input Signature Aggregation.
• They are also focused on digital signatures and off-chain protocols such as Scriptless Scripts and Fedimint.

Introduction

Blockstream is a leading Bitcoin infrastructure company that has announced the formation of its Blockstream Research Team to tackle complex problems in the Bitcoin ecosystem and push the boundaries of what’s possible with Bitcoin.

Projects

The research team is currently working on several projects, including Simplicity – a more robust programming language than Bitcoin Script – as well as Miniscript, which is designed for writing structured Bitcoin Scripts. Additionally, they are developing Elements Script – an extension to Bitcoin Script with new covenant opcodes still being explored.

Digital Signatures

In addition to their programming language work, the research team is taking a close look at digital signatures. To increase efficiency in multisig transactions and maintain privacy levels, they have developed Cross Input Signature Aggregation (CISA/XISA) and MuSig 2 solutions respectively.

Off-Chain Protocols

The Blockstream applied research team is also looking at off-chain protocols such as Scriptless Scripts for smart contract execution outside of the blockchain network, which offers advantages like improved security and scalability using Schnorr signatures. Furthermore, they are creating Fedimint – a federated e-cash protocol enabling users to mint e-cash notes while preserving privacy at the federation level.

Conclusion

Blockstream’s Research Team consists of 10 experienced researchers who are contributing ideas like OP_CSV and covenants to Segwit and Taproot under the Blockstream Research umbrella. Together they are pushing forward new technologies that will help improve efficiency and privacy levels within Bitcoin transactions across the globe.