{"action":"created","issue":{"url":"https://api.github.com/repos/monero-project/monero/issues/3387","repository_url":"https://api.github.com/repos/monero-project/monero","labels_url":"https://api.github.com/repos/monero-project/monero/issues/3387/labels{/name}","comments_url":"https://api.github.com/repos/monero-project/monero/issues/3387/comments","events_url":"https://api.github.com/repos/monero-project/monero/issues/3387/events","html_url":"https://github.com/monero-project/monero/issues/3387","id":304296870,"number":3387,"title":"Proposal to consider an ASIC-friendly proof of work","user":{"login":"iamsmooth","id":8495206,"avatar_url":"https://avatars2.githubusercontent.com/u/8495206?v=4","gravatar_id":"","url":"https://api.github.com/users/iamsmooth","html_url":"https://github.com/iamsmooth","followers_url":"https://api.github.com/users/iamsmooth/followers","following_url":"https://api.github.com/users/iamsmooth/following{/other_user}","gists_url":"https://api.github.com/users/iamsmooth/gists{/gist_id}","starred_url":"https://api.github.com/users/iamsmooth/starred{/owner}{/repo}","subscriptions_url":"https://api.github.com/users/iamsmooth/subscriptions","organizations_url":"https://api.github.com/users/iamsmooth/orgs","repos_url":"https://api.github.com/users/iamsmooth/repos","events_url":"https://api.github.com/users/iamsmooth/events{/privacy}","received_events_url":"https://api.github.com/users/iamsmooth/received_events","type":"User","site_admin":false},"labels":[],"state":"open","locked":false,"assignee":null,"assignees":[],"milestone":null,"comments":32,"created_at":"2018-03-12T09:34:03Z","updated_at":"2018-03-15T04:12:18Z","closed_at":null,"author_association":"CONTRIBUTOR","body":"Currently Monero is pending a hard fork to modify the PoW in order to invalidate existing rumored and reported ASIC designs, and in addition to continue making such changes repeatedly to attempt to prevent ASIC development and deployment on the network. For various reasons, there are longer-term concerns with this strategy, particularly going forward, including:\r\n\r\n1. Continued and repeated ad-hoc modifications to the PoW algorithm may accidentally (or even maliciously) introduce exploits.\r\n2. ASIC developers may build in more flexibility to their designs to be able to accommodate small algorithm tweaks (indeed this may already be the case, we don't know).\r\n3. Potential for favoritism/corruption if plans for tweaks are leaked or influenced far enough ahead of time that some favored ASIC developers may have enough lead time to produce ASICs, while others do not.\r\n4. A belief that ASICs may be desirable as a means to facilitate industrial scale mining and growing the network beyond what might be called a hobby mining phase.\r\n5. Potential for _increased_ monopolization if the strategy is only partially effective (i.e. keeps all _but one_ ASIC developer from succeeding)\r\n6. Dependence of the network on continued frequent hard forking independent of the need for functional upgrades. This carries with it a greater degree of centralization necessary to design, implement and coordinate these forks, without any real plan to transition beyond it.\r\n\r\nFor these reasons I would propose that we _consider_ (which does not necessarily mean _implement_) abandoning the ASIC-hostile approach and instead consider adopting an _ASIC-friendly_ approach in a future hard fork.\r\n\r\nBy ASIC-friendly, I mean something that not only can reasonably be implemented in an ASIC, but which minimizes barriers to creating ASICs, minimizes their costs, facilitates the development of a wide range of compatible hardware at attractive price points, and minimizes opportunities for clever proprietary advantages. By doing so we may maximize the likelihood of a competitive ASIC market developing and minimize the degree of (temporarily or sustained) monopolization. This could possibly be achieved by using a simple, well-known, and well understood algorithm such as SHA3.\r\n\r\nThere are numerous other potential advantages and disadvantages of this approach relative to Monero's current PoW algorithm and strategy, which can be discussed in comments.\r\n\r\nPostscript: My personal view has always been largely ASIC-hostile (primarily based on my analysis the history of the Bitcoin ASIC market when Monero launched in 2014, but reinforced by the continued evolution of the Bitcoin and other coin ASIC markets over the past four years), however I am open to the possibility that unintended consequences of attempting to maintain this approach may cause more harm than overall benefits, in which case it should be dropped."},"comment":{"url":"https://api.github.com/repos/monero-project/monero/issues/comments/373255093","html_url":"https://github.com/monero-project/monero/issues/3387#issuecomment-373255093","issue_url":"https://api.github.com/repos/monero-project/monero/issues/3387","id":373255093,"user":{"login":"stoffu","id":26077532,"avatar_url":"https://avatars1.githubusercontent.com/u/26077532?v=4","gravatar_id":"","url":"https://api.github.com/users/stoffu","html_url":"https://github.com/stoffu","followers_url":"https://api.github.com/users/stoffu/followers","following_url":"https://api.github.com/users/stoffu/following{/other_user}","gists_url":"https://api.github.com/users/stoffu/gists{/gist_id}","starred_url":"https://api.github.com/users/stoffu/starred{/owner}{/repo}","subscriptions_url":"https://api.github.com/users/stoffu/subscriptions","organizations_url":"https://api.github.com/users/stoffu/orgs","repos_url":"https://api.github.com/users/stoffu/repos","events_url":"https://api.github.com/users/stoffu/events{/privacy}","received_events_url":"https://api.github.com/users/stoffu/received_events","type":"User","site_admin":false},"created_at":"2018-03-15T04:12:18Z","updated_at":"2018-03-15T04:12:18Z","author_association":"CONTRIBUTOR","body":"@Gingeropolous \r\n> There are efforts to keep Cost of Node Operation down in order to make it feasible for your average person (sync optimizations, size reductions of proofs, etc). I don't think mining should be viewed any differently.\r\n\r\nI agree, CONOP is extremely important. Then, what's your response to Andrew Poelstra's following argument?\r\n\r\n> ##### 4 Actual frequently asked questions.\r\n> ###### 2. Is ASIC resistance desirable?\r\n> No. ASIC resistance typically involves increasing algorithmic complexity to discourage ASIC developers. However, ASIC’s are still inevitable; all ASIC resistance does is increase the startup capital required and therefore increase centralization of manufacturing. Further, increasing the complexity of proof generation often means also increasing the complexity of proof validation, often disproportionately slow. This discourages (unpaid) nonmining validators, which also increases centralization.\r\n"}}
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