Stellar Community Fund

By zkFetch: zkTLS-Powered Oracle Solution

zkFetch: zkTLS-Powered Oracle Solution

SCF #36

$116.0K

Build

Awarded

zkFetch leverages zkTLS infrastructure to democratize and scale Stellar oracles by enabling fetching of any off-chain data from HTTPS endpoints while not exposing API keys. This enables a truly decentralized oracle infrastructure removing any dependency on centralized oracles such as Chainlink, Pyth etc.

Products & Services

zkFetch is a library that extends HTTP fetch operations with zero-knowledge proof capabilities, built on the Reclaim Protocol's zkTLS infrastructure.

For Stellar, we will:

Enable zkFetch SDK on Stellar allowing any Soroban smart contract to securely access verified off-chain data
Build a decentralized oracle system that provides cryptographically verifiable data proofs
Create Soroban-native smart contracts that can verify zkTLS proofs and make data available for other contracts
Implement privacy-preserving data handling to protect sensitive API keys and credentials

This solution addresses a need in the Stellar ecosystem by providing a secure, transparent, and privacy-focused oracle solution. By leveraging Soroban's capabilities, zkFetch will enable a new class of DApps that require trusted off-chain data, expanding what's possible to build on Stellar.

Soroban

Yes

Requested Budget

$116.0K

Success Criteria

We define success for zkFetch on Stellar through both quantitative metrics and qualitative outcomes:

Quantitative Metrics:

Integrate with 27 data providers for next 9 months.
Support atleast 3 DApps on Stellar using zkFetch
Process 5000+ data verifications within 9 months of Core development.

Qualitative Outcomes:

Enable new categories of applications previously impossible on Stellar due to oracle limitations
Establish zkFetch as the standard for verified data in the Stellar ecosystem
Contribute to Stellar's competitive positioning against other smart contract platforms

Go-To-Market Plan

Developer Adoption: Build SDK, docs, and integration examples, host Stellar workshops, provide community support.
Strategic Partnerships: Integrate with Stellar DApps, integrate with reputed data providers.
Community Engagement: Host community call or twitter space.
Use Case Development: Power prediction markets, RWA tokenization, and DeFi with verified data.
Technical Excellence: Ensure secure, scalable, and efficient oracle solutions for Stellar.

Traction Evidence

While zkFetch is new to the Stellar ecosystem, our technology has demonstrated strong traction in other blockchain environments.

The underlying Reclaim Protocol is the market leader in zkTLS space and has been successfully deployed on Arbitrum, Solana, Optimism, Base, BNB, Polkadot and many other chains, making our solution interoperable.
Prediction markets like tmr.new, fr.market, satoshi palace already using zkFetch. Also making AI agents actions verifiable.
More than 20+ products in production is already using our zkTLS infra and generated more than 5K+ zkproofs in last 3 months.
Our zkTLS infrastructure powers major DiD and attestation projects including PolygonID, EAS, BAS, and Gitcoin Passport
We've built Questbook.app, an on-chain grants management tool used by major L1/L2s including Polygon, Compound, Arbitrum, and TON

In preparation for Stellar integration, we've already conducted initial technical compatibility assessments and identified Soroban-specific requirements, preparing us to begin development immediately upon funding.

Not just that, we have been making significant strides in the web2 world as well.

One of the largest job marketplaces in the world with $1bn+ revenues has completed the POC and getting ready for pilot rollout.
NPCI, the Indian Govt organization, that enables UPI payment gateway is building a verification layer 1 for Indian Fintech and intend to use Reclaim Protocol as the underlying verification infra. Paid POC underway.
MOSIP.io is an open-sourced Identity framework that is being deployed or piloted in ~40 countries across Africa, Asia, Latam and Reclaim is the credential provider partner in MOSIP’s identity wallet - Inji.
Active discussions are underway with another 4-5 large unicorns to leverage Reclaim capabilities.

Team:

zkFetch leverages the zkTLS infrastructure developed by Reclaim Protocol, a project led by the team at CreatorOS Inc. We are a 35+ member engineering and web3 product development & research team including ZKP researchers and with previous affiliations to Stanford, Microsoft, Meta and Google . We have also built - Questbook.app, an industry leading on-chain grants management tool that is used by some of the major L1/L2s including Polygon, Solana, Compound, Arbitrum, Ton, among others. CreatorOS is a YC W21 company.

Madhavan Malolan : CEO
- Building in crypto since 2016.
- Among first 5 contributors to Plasma (ethereum scaling solution) specifications.
- Open source contributor.
- ex-Microsoft, Computer Science IIIT-H.
- LinkedIn. Github
Kirill Kutsenok, Cryptography & Security Researcher
Adhiraj Singh: Lead Developer
Aleksai Ermishkin: Lead Blockchain Developer

Tranche 1 (Deliverable Roadmap) - MVP

Total Budget : $30,000

[Deliverable 1] zkFetch Core Soroban SDK - $20,000

Adapt zkFetch architecture for Stellar's Soroban environment
Create the foundational SDK allowing Soroban contracts to perform zkTLS-secured data fetches
Implement proof generation and initial verification mechanisms optimized for Stellar's transaction model
Develop basic examples of data fetching from common APIs (price feeds, sports results, weather data)
Create comprehensive unit tests.
Estimated date: End of Month 2

Budget Breakdown:

Senior Rust Developers (100 hours @ $100/hr): $10,000
Cryptography Specialist (100 hours @ $100/hr): $10,000

[Deliverable 2] Attestor Network Integration & Support - $10,000

Connect to Reclaim Protocol's attestor network specifically configured for Stellar.
Implement proof generation optimized for Soroban's runtime and cost model.
Test with at least one data provider to ensure robustness
Estimated date: End of Month 2

Budget Breakdown:

Backend Developer (100 hours @ $50/hr): $5,000
Blockchain Integration Specialist (100 hours @ $50/hr): $5,000

Tranche 2 (Deliverable Roadmap) - Testnet

Total Budget : $5,000

[Deliverable]

Develop and execute extensive test suite covering:
Unit tests for all core components (target: 90% code coverage).
Integration tests for end-to-end verification flows.
Create comprehensive documentation for developers, including API references and integration guides
Stress test the system with various transaction loads and optimization
Test with at least 3 data provider integrations (financial data, sports data, weather, etc.)
Estimated date: End of Month 3

Budget Breakdown:

QA Testing (60 hours @ $50/hr): $3,000
Technical Documentation Writer (40 hours @ $50/hr): $2,000

Tranche 3 (Deliverable Roadmap) - Mainnet

Total Budget: $81,000

[Deliverables]

Systematic Integration Program: Deploy 3 new data providers monthly for 9 consecutive months, creating a robust ecosystem of 27 verified data sources.
24/7 Data Availability: Ensure continuous, reliable data feeds. All the integration technical support will be provided free of cost to the the projects built on Stellar for the next 12 months.
Strategic Data Categories:
- Financial Markets: Real-time price feeds, exchange rates, lending rates, derivatives data, and market indicators.
- Sports & Events: Live scores, match outcomes, tournament rankings, and betting market data from major global leagues
- Weather & Climate: Regional forecasts, historical weather patterns, natural disaster alerts, and climate metrics.
- Economic Indicators: GDP figures, employment statistics, inflation rates, and other critical macroeconomic data.
Estimated date: End of Month 12

Budget Breakdown:

Data Providers Cost- $3,000 per provider ( including integration and support cost )
- Total cost: 3 providers per month(average) × $3,000 × 9 months = $81,000

Ongoing Ecosystem Support & Sustainability

12-Month Complimentary Integration Support: We commit to providing comprehensive, no-cost integration assistance to any Stellar developers and DApps implementing zkFetch during the first year, ensuring widespread adoption and successful implementation across the ecosystem.
Self-Sustaining Revenue Model: Within 12 months, zkFetch will transition to a sustainable business model where data consumers contribute to operational costs, ensuring the long-term viability of the service without requiring additional grants or funding from the Stellar Foundation.

This approach positions zkFetch as both developer-friendly in the short term and financially sustainable for the long-term health of the Stellar ecosystem.

Team

Our team's expertise and Reclaim Protocol's proven track record uniquely position us to deliver zkFetch integration for Stellar with high trust and accountability:

Capabilities:

Unparalleled zkTLS Infrastructure: Reclaim is the only production-ready zkTLS infrastructure, capable of generating zk proofs and data attestations in under 4 seconds, even on low-compute devices.
Extensive Blockchain Experience: Our team has successfully deployed Reclaim on multiple chains including Arbitrum, Solana, Optimism, Base, BNB, and Polkadot, demonstrating cross-chain expertise.
Stellar-Specific Knowledge: Deep understanding of development on Stellar essential for seamless integration.
Proven Scalability: Our devtool allows generation of data templates for any website within 30 minutes, ensuring zkFetch's adaptability to Stellar's diverse needs.
Wide-ranging Integrations: Reclaim powers major DID and attestation projects like PolygonID, EAS, BAS, and Gitcoin Passport, showcasing its versatility and reliability.
Web2 and Web3 Compatibility: Reclaim SDK seamlessly embeds in both Web2 and Web3 applications, broadening potential use cases for Stellar.

Feasibility Validation:

Existing Proof of Concept: We've already developed a Data DAO, testing zkFetch's capabilities with various data feed APIs.
Rapid Prototyping: We'll leverage our sub-4-second proof generation capability to quickly develop and iterate on Stellar specific implementations.
Phased Testnet Deployment: Incremental deployments on Stellar testnets will allow for continuous validation and refinement.
Industry Partnerships: We're actively engaging with leading data providers to integrate them into our platform, ensuring robust real-world testing.
Community Engagement: Regular reviews with SCF technical advisors and engagement with the Stellar developer community will provide crucial feedback.

Trust and Accountability:

Transparent Reporting: Regular updates on project milestones, including GitHub commits and technical blog posts.
Open Communication: Maintaining open channels with the Stellar community for continuous feedback and accountability.

we are also recipient of grant for Reclaim in F11

Our team's proven expertise in zkTLS infrastructure, cross-chain deployment experience, demonstrates our capability to successfully integrate zkFetch into Stellar. We're committed to a transparent, community-engaged development process that will deliver a secure, efficient, and transformative oracle solution for the Stellar ecosystem.

We built Questbook.app, an on-chain grants management tool and have been successfully running it for nearly 2 years managing grants for large L1/L2s including Polygon, Compound, Arbitrum, Ton etc. Questbook platform has disbursed more than $3 Mn to more than 250+ developers and engaged with more than 25000 developers.

Written more 100 tutorials for web2 developers to transition to web3 (http://openquest.xyz/). More than 20000

Built DAuth a decentralized OAuth alternative (https://github.com/madhavanmalolan/dauth)

Authored EIP 1361 (https://github.com/ethereum/EIPs/issues/1361)

Retroactive funding in education mechanism design research (https://ethresear.ch/t/retrofunding-dao-for-education/10821)