A Fairer World, Trust and Breakthrough Technology with Zac Williamson

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31 July 2025

1 hr 16 mins 19 secs

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fairness zac williamson aztec

About this Episode

This episode of the #citizenweb3 podcast features Zac Williamson from Aztec

Zac Williamson, co‑inventor of the PLONK zero‑knowledge proof system, is a former Oxford particle physicist who calls himself a “physics refugee.” He leads the development of privacy‑focused blockchain tools to make money a form of autonomy and agency, aiming for fairer systems as breakthrough technologies reshape trust and justice.

Aztec Labs is a Layer‑2 network on Ethereum that uses zero‑knowledge proofs to enable private, scalable smart contracts. Its goal is to give users more autonomy and fairness in digital finance through privacy‑preserving technology.

We spoke to Zac Williamson about Aztec and:
  • Physics refugees
  • Breakthrough technology, it becomes a gold rush. And you get scammers.
  • Trust infrastructure technology
  • I want things to be more fair
  • Software you can run only once
  • Quantum computers
  • Play to your strengths
  • Find people to cover for your weaknesses
  • The arc of history always tends towards justice
  • Money is autonomy, it's agency

Timestamps

00:00 – 01:17 : Intro
01:17 -- 06:11 : Physics to Web3
06:11 -- 15:20 : Explaining the values of Web3
15:20 -- 17:05 : P2P
17:05 -- 24:24 : What it looks like in five years
24:24 -- 28:40 : Breaking the system
28:40 -- 34:00 : Cryptography
34:00 -- 41:15 : ADHD
41:15 -- 46:30 : Semantics and privacy
46:30 -- 53:19 : Fear
53:19 -- 57:02 : Filling the gaps
57:02 -- 58:30 : The next generation
58:30 -- 01:03:00 : Increasing decentralization
01:03:00 – 01:05:15 : Data centres
01:05:15 – 01:16:20 : The Blitz

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