MACI Overview
The MACI codebase consists of three subsystems in different programming languages:
- Circom circuits
- Solidity smart contracts
- TypeScript libraries
Circuits
MACI has multiple circuits that ensure all off-chain computation is completed correctly. The circuits are used to generate zero-knowledge proofs (zk-SNARKs) that the votes were counted correctly. Specifically, they enforce that message processing and vote tallying were correctly executed by the coordinator. The proofs can then be verified through a verifier smart contract on-chain.
The circuits for these zero-knowledge proofs are written in Circom.
The MACI circuits are released through the @maci-circuits NPM package.
Learn more about MACI circuits
Smart contracts
The MACI smart contracts handle the on-chain aspects - both the functionality and the storage - of the voting system. They provide the functionality to deploy polls, register voters, and accept votes. They also store and manage the on-chain data from transactions, such as the encrypted votes of a poll. Finally, they verify proofs of the zk-SNARK circuits, so that everyone can validate the voting results.
The MACI smart contracts are written in Solidity.
Contracts are released through the @maci-contracts NPM package.
Learn more about MACI contracts
TypeScript libraries
The TypeScript libraries manage the business logic between the smart contracts and the circuit code. They provide a variety of functionality, such as encryption tools, utilities, and a CLI for interacting with MACI (for actions like signing up, voting, tallying votes & generating proofs).
The MACI TypeScript libraries are released through the following NPM packages: