BitVM in a Nutshell
  • BitVM in a Nutshell
  • Introduction to BitVM
    • What Is BitVM?
    • How Bitcoin's Programming Works
    • How BitVM Enhances Bitcoin's Functionality
    • Bringing Computation to Bitcoin Through Off-Chain Execution
    • Conclusion
  • BitVM Applications & Use Cases
    • Introduction
    • Building Trust-Minimized Bridges
    • Beyond the Lightning Network
    • Sharing Bitcoin Security with Other Systems
    • Conclusion
  • BitVM Programming Paradigms
    • Introduction
    • How to Construct a BitVM in Practice
    • The Challenges of Compiling for Bitcoin
    • The Solution: Staging Compilation and Decomposition
    • Remarks and Future Directions
  • Existing Efforts related to BitVM
    • The Birth of BitVM
    • Making BitVM Practical: The Push for Efficiency and Automation
    • Real-World Applications: The BitVM Bridge
    • Conclusion
  • Future Work: Scaling BitVM in Production
    • Introduction
    • Developing Bitcoin-Friendly Cryptographic Primitives
    • Automating the Compilation Pipeline
    • Enhancing Security Through Formal Methods
    • Conclusion
  • BitVM vs. OP_CAT
    • What Is OP_CAT and Why Does It Matter?
    • How OP_CAT Could Boost BitVM
    • Why Isn’t OP_CAT Enabled Yet?
    • Conclusion
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  1. BitVM Programming Paradigms

The Challenges of Compiling for Bitcoin

PreviousHow to Construct a BitVM in PracticeNextThe Solution: Staging Compilation and Decomposition

Last updated 7 months ago

Turning high-level code into Bitcoin script is particularly challenging. Bitcoin’s scripting language is not like typical programming languages; it’s limited, not “Turing complete” (meaning it can’t handle all types of computations), and has strict limits on space. This makes translating even simple programs a lot more complex than it would be on other blockchains, like Ethereum.

For example, let’s revisit our Groth16 Verifier. In its high-level form, it’s just a few hundred lines of code. But when we compile it down to Bitcoin script, it explodes in size—potentially taking up millions of lines of Bitcoin script code and several gigabytes in memory! This is a huge problem, especially considering that Bitcoin’s blocks are limited to 4 megabytes each. Trying to fit something this large into Bitcoin’s script language is akin to trying to fit an elephant into a small car—the sheer size and complexity make it unfeasible under current network constraints. This massive size and verbosity make BitVM programs impractical without serious adjustments.