Ere – Unified zkVM Interface & Toolkit

Compile. Execute. Prove. Verify.
One ergonomic Rust API, multiple zero‑knowledge virtual machines.

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Table of Contents

• Features

• Supported zkVMs

• Quick Start

  • 1. Install SDKs
  • 2. Add Dependencies
  • 3. Compile & Prove Example
  • 4. Run the Test Suite

• Directory Layout

• Architecture

  • The Interface
  • Backend Crates
  • Input Handling

• Contributing

• Disclaimer

• License

Features

• Unified Rust API for compiling, executing, proving & verifying zkVM programs
• Pluggable back‑ends – easily switch between different zkVMs
• SDK bootstrap scripts for every supported zkVM
• End‑to‑end test suite covering compilation → proof → verification for each backend

Supported zkVMs

• SP1
• OpenVM
• Risc Zero
• Jolt
• Pico
• Zisk
• Nexus

Quick Start

This guide assumes you have Rust and Cargo installed. If not, please refer to the Rust installation guide. Also, you must have Docker installed since some of the SDKs require it.

1. Install SDKs (if required)

All zkVMs but SP1 require you to install their SDKs, for example:

bash scripts/sdk_installers/install_jolt_sdk.sh

For SP1, guest program compilation uses Docker. With time more zkVMs will follow this patterns so installing SDKs in the host machine isn't necessary.

2. Add Dependencies

# Cargo.toml
[dependencies]
zkvm-interface = { path = "crates/zkvm-interface" }
ere-sp1        = { path = "crates/ere-sp1" }

3. Compile & Prove Example

use zkvm_interface::{Compiler, zkVM, Input, ProverResourceType};
use ere_sp1::{EreSP1, RV32_IM_SUCCINCT_ZKVM_ELF};

let guest_directory = std::path::Path::new("guest/hello");
let elf = RV32_IM_SUCCINCT_ZKVM_ELF.compile(guest_directory)?; // compile
let mut io = Input::new();
io.write(&42u32)?;
let zkvm = EreSP1::new(elf, ProverResourceType::Cpu);      // create zkVM instance
let (proof, _report) = zkvm.prove(&io)?;                   // prove
zkvm.verify(&proof)?;                                      // verify

4. Run the Test Suite

cargo test --workspace

Tip

 Use the provided Dockerfiles for a ready‑made toolchain.

Directory Layout

crates/
  zkvm-interface/     ← core traits & types
  ere-{backend}/      ← backend adapters (sp1, openvm, …)
tests/                ← guest programs & integration tests
scripts/sdk_installers/ ← SDK install helpers
docker/               ← Dockerfiles & build contexts

Architecture

The Interface

zkvm-interface exposes two core traits:

• Compiler – compile a guest project into the correct zkVM artifact. For most this will be a RISCV ELF binary or some type that wraps it and includes extra metadata such as a proving and verifying key.
• zkVM – execute, prove & verify that artifact. A zkVM instance is created for specific program, where the program comes from the Compiler.

Backend Crates

Each ere-{backend} crate implements the above traits for its zkVM.

Input Handling

The Input type supports both chunked (Vec<Vec<u8>>) and contiguous (Vec<u8>) modes to satisfy differing backend APIs.

Contributing

PRs and issues are welcome!

Disclaimer

zkVMs evolve quickly; expect breaking changes. Although the API is generic, its primary target is zkEVMs, which may for example, guide the default set of precompiles.

License

Licensed under either of

• MIT license (LICENSE‑MIT or http://opensource.org/licenses/MIT)
• Apache License, Version 2.0 (LICENSE‑APACHE or http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0)

at your option.