- zkSync’s Matter Labs is seeking to trademark “ZK”.
- Industry leaders condemned the move.
- The backlash prompted a response from Alex Gluchowski, CEO of Matter Labs.
As zero-knowledge technologies gain popularity in the Ethereum Layer 2 space, competition between solutions is heating up.
Over the past week, zkSync’s move to use “ZK” as its ticker has brought these rising tensions to the forefront. But things appear to be reaching a boiling point, as the team behind the project now appears to be applying to trademark the acronym.
Did the zkSync developers go too far?
Polygon, StarkWare, and others accuse Substance Labs
“Matter Labs, the company developing zkSync, has filed trademark applications in nine countries asserting that ZK is the exclusive intellectual property of Matter Labs.” A letter signed by executives from major cryptocurrency ZK builders – StarkWare, Polygon, Polyhedra and Kakarot – was released on Thursday, May 30.
source: GitHub
In the letter, industry leaders strongly condemned Matter Labs’ move, calling it “a transparent attempt by a company to claim ownership of something that does not belong to it.” The group highlighted the perceived abhorrence of Matter Labs’ move, pointing out that in addition to not owning the technology, the company did not contribute to its development.
According to the group, ZK is a public good and should remain as such. They called on the community to withdraw Matter Labs’ trademark application.
The recent letter elicited a response from Matter Labs CEO Alex Gluchowski.
Is this just a “defensive” move?
In response to the letter, Gluchowski insisted that Matters Lab remains committed to the libertarian and cypherpunk ethos, adding that all products will continue to be released under open source licenses.
However, according to Matter Labs CEO, the registered trademark is “defensive” and is meant to protect users from malicious actors who might try to confuse their products with Matter Labs’ products. Gluchowski also claimed that the company had reached out to the Ethereum Foundation to help create a legal framework that would allow terms like ZK to be used in the public domain.
But Gluchowski’s statement did not inspire confidence. “I’m not sure,” retorted Abdel Bakhta, head of the StarkWare ecosystem, adding, “This movement isn’t really cypherpunk!”
On the flipside
- According to the letter, these trademark applications have not yet been approved.
- Polyhedra was the first to lay claim to the ZK ticker.
Why This Matters
The recent controversy over Matter Labs’ actions could impact cryptocurrency pricing and trademark practices in the future.
To learn more about zkSync, read:
zkSync announces V24 upgrade, spreading rumors of June airdrop
Learn how Polygon (MATIC) seeks to secure its interoperability layer.
Why Polygon (MATIC) Prefers Distrust Chain for AggLayer Security