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Vitalik Buterin declares zkEVM speed race won after ZKsync milestone, urges security focus

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin praised ZKsync's Airbender Prime milestone and declared the battle for zkEVM speed definitively won, urging developers to shift priority to security as ZKsync's token rose 6.2%.

Portrait of Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin.
Image: @Cointelegraph

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin congratulated the ZKsync Airbender team on October 15, 2026, declaring that the race for zkEVM speed has been definitively won. Following ZKsync's achievement in real-time proving, Buterin stated that the ecosystem's top priority must now shift entirely toward security and formal verification.[1][4][5]

The remarks came after ZKsync's Airbender Prime verified 99% of 7,200 Ethereum mainnet blocks in under 10 seconds each using a single NVIDIA RTX PRO 6000 Blackwell GPU, according to BSCN. In response, Buterin outlined three core security objectives for zkEVM developers: formally verifying that arithmetization matches the Ethereum specification, enforcing a hard maximum bound on prover cost relative to block gas, and formally verifying the security of the proof system itself.[1][4]

Following Buterin's commendation, ZKsync's native token, ZK, rose 6.2% over a 24-hour window to $0.01649377, while gaining 9.1% against Bitcoin to reach 0.000000203792 BTC, according to CoinGecko data. Crypto Briefing reported that while the innovation could help democratize Ethereum verification, security and cost efficiency must remain top priorities for sustainable growth.[2][3]

Key facts

  • Vitalik Buterin congratulated the ZKsync Airbender team on October 15, 2026, stating he considers the battle for zkEVM speed definitively won.
  • Buterin urged zkEVM developers to shift their top priority to security and formal verification.
  • Buterin outlined three security priorities: formally verifying equivalence to the Ethereum specification, capping prover cost relative to block gas, and formally verifying proof system security.
  • ZKsync's Airbender Prime verified 99% of 7,200 Ethereum mainnet blocks in under 10 seconds each on a single NVIDIA RTX PRO 6000 Blackwell GPU, according to BSCN.
  • ZKsync's token, ZK, climbed 6.2% over 24 hours to $0.01649377 and rose 9.1% against Bitcoin to 0.000000203792 BTC, according to CoinGecko.
  • Crypto Briefing reported that ZKsync's innovation could democratize Ethereum verification, but noted security and cost efficiency must be prioritized.

Sources · 5 sources

  1. VE

    vitalik.eth@VitalikButerinPost on X ·

    Big congratulations to the @zksync airbender team for this milestone. At this point, I consider the battle for speed to be definitively won, and the top priority for zkEVMs should shift fully to security. To me that means formally verifying (i) equivalence of the arithmetization to the ethereum spec (ii) a hard maximum bound on (prover cost) / (amount of gas in block) (iii) security of the proof system itself https://t.co/cgtFXBpicf

    Open source
  2. CB

    Crypto BriefingArticle ·

    ZKsync token climbs 6.2% after Vitalik Buterin praises Airbender Prime ZKsync's innovation could democratize Ethereum verification, but security and cost efficiency must be prioritized for sustainable growth. The post ZKsync token climbs 6.2% after Vitalik Buterin praises Airbender Prime appeared first on Crypto Briefing .

    Open source
  3. CO

    CoinGecko@coingeckoPost on X ·

    $ZK pumps 6.2% today after Vitalik Buterin commended the team’s Airbender Prime for achieving real-time Ethereum proving on a single GPU. https://t.co/rQOooRTQK3

    Open source
  4. BS

    BSCN@BSCNewsPost on X ·

    Vitalik Wants ZkEVM Developers to Stop Chasing Speed and Fix Security Vitalik Buterin (@VitalikButerin) says zkEVMs have effectively won the race for speed. His comments followed ZKsync’s (@zksync) ethereum:0x66a5cfb2e9c529f14fe6364ad1075df3a649c0a5 Airbender Prime milestone, which verified 99% of 7,200 Ethereum ethereum:native mainnet blocks in under 10 seconds each. It ran on a single NVIDIA RTX PRO 6000 Blackwell GPU. "At this point, I consider the battle for speed to be definitively won, and the top priority for zkEVMs should shift fully to security," Vitalik noted. Vitalik now wants developers to prioritize formal verification and proof system security.

    Open source
  5. CO

    Cointelegraph@CointelegraphPost on X ·

    ⚡️ TODAY: Vitalik Buterin says the top priority for zkEVMs should now be security, arguing the race for speed has been won after ZKsync’s Airbender milestone. https://t.co/Q2Oquu1R65

    Open source