AVS Spotlight: Hyperbolic

Proof of Sampling by Hyperbolic: How EigenLayer Leverages PoSP, the Gold Standard for Verification

Overview

One of the biggest challenges in decentralized AI is ensuring reliable, efficient, and scalable validation. Hyperbolic, a decentralized AI infrastructure platform, has developed Proof of Sampling (PoSP) to address this issue. PoSP, created in collaboration with UC Berkeley and Columbia University, offers a mechanism that is 100–1000 times more cost-efficient than zkML and more secure than opML. PoSP is versatile and can validate a variety of services in AI but can also be applied to many other areas in decentralized networks which may value scalability and security.

EigenLayer is integrating PoSP to its restaking protocol to secure Actively Validated Services (AVS). This article explores how EigenLayer leverages PoSP to enhance AVS restaking.

The Opportunity

As decentralized AI services scale, ensuring continuous and trustworthy validation without centralized oversight becomes critical. This post focuses on how Hyperbolic helps decentralized AI services address the challenges of trust and scalability. By leveraging its Proof of Secure Processing (PoSP), Hyperbolic resolves the limitations in traditional methods like optimistic fraud proofs (opML) and zero-knowledge proofs (zkML) offering a scalable, secure solution for consistent service validation.

Hyperbolic identified the need for a scalable, secure, and efficient verification mechanism. The result was Proof of Sampling (PoSP), which achieves continuous service validation through randomized audits and game-theoretic incentives. PoSP operates under Nash Equilibrium principles, making dishonesty economically irrational for validators. This innovation aligns seamlessly with EigenLayer’s restaking protocol.

What is PoSP?

Proof of Sampling (PoSP) is a verification protocol designed to enhance decentralized systems by combining:

1. Random Sampling: Validators are randomly selected to perform audits, reducing computational load.
2. Incentive Structures: Honest validators are rewarded, while fraudulent ones are penalized, ensuring rational behavior under Nash Equilibrium.
3. Minimal Overhead: PoSP achieves high efficiency, adding only 0.735% computational cost.

This makes PoSP ideal for scaling decentralized services while maintaining trust and security.

Integration with EigenLayer

EigenLayer extends Ethereum’s cryptoeconomic security by allowing stakers to secure additional services, such as AVS, through restaking. 

By integrating PoSP with EigenLayer, Hyperbolic is able to achieve:

• Randomized Validation: Validators are selected randomly to verify outputs, ensuring unbiased results.
• Scalable AVS Support: PoSP reduces computational demands, allowing EigenLayer to secure large-scale services efficiently.
• Fraud Deterrence: Strict penalties make dishonesty unprofitable, while honest behavior remains the optimal strategy.

This integration enables Hyperbolic to provide scalable and trustworthy AI services through EigenLayer's infrastructure while laying the groundwork for other AVS use cases.

The Results

The integration of EigenLayer and PoSP has delivered significant benefits to decentralized AI validation:

• Enhanced Security: Randomized audits drastically reduced the risk of fraud and ensured validator honesty.
• Operational Efficiency: PoSP added less than 1% computational overhead, maintaining high performance.
• Improved Scalability: Hyperbolic efficiently scaled its decentralized AI services to meet growing demand.
• Cost Savings: The solution achieved a 75% cost reduction compared to centralized alternatives.
• Competitive Advantage: Hyperbolic’s platform now rivals centralized solutions in performance while offering the security of decentralization.

"The EigenLayer protocol combined with our Proof of Sampling protocol fundamentally transforms how we secure decentralized services. We now offer scalable, reliable, and fraud-resistant infrastructure at a fraction of the cost."

Jasper Zhang, CEO of Hyperbolic

Applications of PoSP in AVS Restaking

Looking ahead, Hyperbolic plans to introduce a generalized PoSP AVS framework to support other AVS systems built on EigenLayer, further expanding its impact on decentralized services. PoSP has broad applications across decentralized services secured by EigenLayer, including:

• AI Inference Validation: Ensures high-quality, trustworthy results in decentralized AI computations.
• AI Training and Data Validation: Guarantees integrity in training datasets and inference outputs.
• Data Availability and Rollups: Secures Layer 2 transactions by validating data availability with minimal overhead.
• Cross-Chain Operations: Enhances the security of bridges by ensuring reliable transaction verification.

Conclusion

Hyperbolic and EigenLayer’s collaboration addresses the critical challenges of securing decentralized services. By integrating Proof of Sampling with EigenLayer’s restaking protocol, Hyperbolic has  achieved a scalable, secure, and efficient solution for Actively Validated Services. PoSP has set a new standard for decentralized validation, delivering enhanced security and trust with minimal computational cost.

Learn more about Hyperbolic and PoSP, and follow along on X.

Schedule a demo or explore the documentation to see how PoSP is a gamechanger for decentralized AI services.