What Shielded Labs does

Shielded Labs is an independent, donation-funded support organization incorporated in Switzerland that develops and maintains core protocol infrastructure for the Zcash privacy-preserving cryptocurrency network. The organization is staffed by a fully remote team of approximately ten specialists, including Zooko Wilcox (Zcash creator) as Chief Product Officer, and operates without direct or indirect funding from the Zcash Development Fund or block rewards, relying instead on voluntary ZEC contributions from holders. Its product surface centers on the Z3 stack — the Zebra node implementation, Zaino lightwallet protocol, Zallet wallet, and the Orchard zk-SNARK shielded pool — and on formal-verification efforts targeting Zcash's cryptographic circuits.

The organization pursues four live protocol initiatives: Network Sustainability Mechanism (NSM) for issuance smoothing under the 21M cap; Crosslink, a hybrid Proof-of-Work/Proof-of-Stake finality layer built on a Tendermint-derived Tenderlink BFT engine; Dynamic Fees, a market-based transaction-fee mechanism with priority and speed-up semantics; and Ironwood (NU6.3), a network upgrade that creates a new shielded pool on a corrected Orchard circuit to restore supply-integrity verification. Shielded Labs also conducts AI-assisted security research, notably using Anthropic's Claude Opus 4.8 to discover the Orchard counterfeiting vulnerability in May 2026, and coordinated its emergency remediation within days. Distributed via open-source channels including GitHub (ShieldedLabs/zebra-crosslink), it engages ZEC holders through coinholder polls, Zcash Community Forums, Discord, and a quarterly Coinholder-Directed Retroactive Grants program.

The business model is non-commercial: revenue is generated exclusively through donations from ZEC holders and supporters, with the only publicly quantified contribution being a $1.4 million ZEC donation from the Winklevoss twins via Cypherpunk Technologies in January 2026. Customers are not transacted with in the conventional sense — the served base consists of Zcash network users (holders, exchanges, custodians, mining pools, and wallet providers) that benefit from protocol upgrades, security disclosures, and the Zombie Network Shield deployment pattern that uses Rust-memory-safe Zebra nodes in front of zcashd.

Name

Shielded Labs

Legal name

Shielded Labs

Website

https://shieldedlabs.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

2024

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Shielded Labs is an independent, donation-funded Swiss non-profit that develops and maintains core protocol upgrades (Ironwood, Crosslink, NSM, Dynamic Fees) and AI-assisted security research for the Zcash privacy-preserving cryptocurrency network, serving ZEC holders, exchanges, custodians, mining pools, and wallet providers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cryptocurrency Protocol Development

SIC

Finance Services (6199)

akta.pro primary industry

Layer 1 Base Protocols & Consensus (execution, consensus, security, clients) (FSAPAAAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Protocol Security, Monitoring & Risk Tooling (audits, formal verification, analytics) (FSAPAAAL), Proof of Reserves, Attestations & On-Chain Audit/Assurance (FSADALAK), Privacy, Data Protection & Compliance (zk compliance, GDPR/PII handling) (FSAPAJAM)

Keywords

• Blockchain protocol development
• Zero-knowledge cryptography
• Consensus mechanism design
• Cryptographic security auditing
• Open-source privacy infrastructure

Headquarters

HQ city

Switzerland

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Donations from Zcash holders: Shielded Labs is an independent, donation-funded Zcash support organization. It is the first organization in the Zcash ecosystem that has never received direct or indirect funding from the Development Fund or block rewards. Funding comes directly from Zcash holders and supporters.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Shielded Labs builds and maintains open-source protocol upgrades for the Zcash privacy-preserving cryptocurrency, including the Network Sustainability Mechanism (NSM) issuance redesign, the Crosslink hybrid PoW/PoS finality gadget, Dynamic Fees transaction-fee mechanics, and the Ironwood (NU6.3) network upgrade for supply-integrity verification. The organization also conducts AI-assisted cryptographic security research and coordinates consensus-level vulnerability disclosure and remediation across the Zcash ecosystem. All work is delivered as open-source software under independent, donation-funded governance.

Product overview

Shielded Labs is an independent, donation-funded Zcash support organization that develops protocol upgrades and security tools for the Zcash network. Its product portfolio consists of four core protocol improvements: the Network Sustainability Mechanism (NSM) for modified issuance mechanics maintaining the 21M cap; Crosslink, a hybrid PoW/PoS consensus upgrade adding staking finalizers; Dynamic Fees, market-driven transaction fee mechanics; and Ironwood, a supply-verification network upgrade. Additionally, Shielded Labs conducts AI-assisted security research to proactively discover and remediate vulnerabilities in the Zcash protocol.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Network Sustainability Mechanism (NSM) An upgrade to Zcash's issuance mechanism that maintains the 21 million coin cap while enabling burning of ZEC from circulating supply, which can later be reintroduced as future block rewards to sustain the network; composed of ZIP 233, ZIP 234, and ZIP 235. It is delivered for the Zcash ecosystem, including node operators, holders, and infrastructure providers concerned with long-term network economics.
• Crosslink A hybrid Proof-of-Work and Proof-of-Stake consensus upgrade for Zcash that adds a finality gadget layer (finalizers) to the existing PoW chain, providing assured finality, staking rewards for ZEC holders, and protection against rollbacks. Staking operates within the Orchard shielded pool via the cTAZ token design.
• Dynamic Fees Market-driven, comparable-based transaction fee mechanics for Zcash, including priority delivery (4x standard fee), speed-up semantics for stuck transactions, and a fee suggestion RPC endpoint (z_getstandardfee) that recommends fees based on recent block data; designed for wallets and exchanges.
• Ironwood Network Upgrade (NU6.3) A Zcash network upgrade (NU6.3) designed to restore users' ability to independently verify the soundness of Zcash's circulating supply by creating a new shielded pool using the corrected Orchard circuit and sealing the original Orchard pool, with a turnstile mechanism preventing more ZEC from exiting than legitimately entered.
• AI-Assisted Security Research Proactive security research service using state-of-the-art AI models (Anthropic Claude Opus 4.8) to identify vulnerabilities in Zcash protocol codebases before malicious actors can exploit them, combined with formal verification projects for cryptographic circuits. Delivered for the Zcash ecosystem including exchanges, custodians, and node operators.

Quantifiable outcome

• Critical counterfeiting vulnerability patched within 4 days of discovery, preventing potential unlimited ZEC counterfeiting
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability3 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• AnthropiccoreTechnology or Integration · 10 July 2026AI company whose Claude Opus 4.8 model was used by Shielded Labs researcher Taylor Hornby to discover the critical Orchard counterfeiting vulnerability. Also engaged Mythos AI model for security audits before Anthropic suspended access due to US export controls.
• Taylor HornbycoreOthers · 13 June 2026Security researcher engaged by Shielded Labs who discovered the critical Orchard counterfeiting vulnerability using AI-assisted analysis. Also involved in formal verification and Ironwood development.
• Zcash FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 6 June 2026Collaborated on implementing Ironwood in Zebra and supporting the ecosystem-wide transition from zcashd to Zebra. Worked together on security disclosures and vulnerability remediation efforts.
• Zcash Open Development Lab (ZODL)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 6 June 2026Coordinated emergency response for Orchard vulnerability disclosure. ZODL engineers implemented the new consensus rules for Ironwood and carried out critically important formal verification work.
• Tachyon Project / Project TachyoncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 6 June 2026Helped define Ironwood's architecture, implemented new consensus rules, and conducted formal verification work. Also working on additional assurance that no more counterfeiting vulnerabilities exist.
• Valar GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 6 June 2026Collaborated on defining Ironwood's architecture and implementing new consensus rules for the Zcash network upgrade.
• Foundry Digital LLCminorOthers · 13 April 2026Launched Foundry Zcash Pool, a privacy-focused mining pool that grew to approximately 30% of network hashrate. Also launched Zcashinfo.com block explorer for the Zcash community.
• Luxor Mining PoolminorOthers · 23 March 2026Luxor confirmed deployment of the patch for Sprout vulnerability within days of disclosure. Part of coordinated effort with F2Pool, AntPool, and ViaBTC mining pools.
• F2Pool Mining PoolminorOthers · 23 March 2026F2Pool confirmed deployment of the patch for Sprout vulnerability within days of disclosure. Part of coordinated effort with Luxor, AntPool, and ViaBTC mining pools.
• AntPool Mining PoolminorOthers · 23 March 2026AntPool confirmed deployment of the patch for Sprout vulnerability within days of disclosure. Part of coordinated effort with Luxor, F2Pool, and ViaBTC mining pools.
• ViaBTC Mining PoolminorOthers · 23 March 2026ViaBTC confirmed deployment of the patch for Sprout vulnerability within days of disclosure. Part of coordinated effort with Luxor, F2Pool, and AntPool mining pools.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• OpenZeppelin: Major blockchain security and smart contract development firm providing audits, security tooling, and protocol development services. Comparable in security research rigor though operating at a much larger commercial scale.
• Chainalysis: Blockchain analytics and compliance firm providing transaction monitoring and forensic tools. Comparable in blockchain protocol analysis depth, though focused on surveillance/compliance rather than privacy-preserving infrastructure.
• Halborn: Leading blockchain security auditing firm offering comprehensive smart contract and protocol audits. Comparable in security research and vulnerability discovery capabilities, though serving multiple protocols rather than Zcash-specific work.
• Trail of Bits: Established cybersecurity firm with a dedicated blockchain security practice covering audits, formal verification, and tooling. Comparable to Shielded Labs' AI-assisted security research and formal verification efforts, but serves a broader client base.

Emerging players

• Prysmatic Labs: Core Ethereum consensus client developer (Prysm) implementing Proof-of-Stake protocol upgrades. Comparable in L1 consensus mechanism development and protocol upgrade orchestration, though focused on Ethereum.
• Aztec Network: Privacy-focused L2 on Ethereum using zk-SNARKs for shielded transactions. Comparable in privacy-preserving cryptographic infrastructure and zk circuit development, though targeting Ethereum rather than a standalone L1.
• Starkware: Zero-knowledge cryptography firm building STARK-based scaling solutions (StarkNet) with focus on zk-rollup infrastructure. Comparable in zk-SNARK/STARK expertise and L1/L2 protocol development, though focused on Ethereum scaling rather than privacy.

Direct peers

• Zcash Open Development Lab (ZODL): Zcash engineering organization that partnered with Shielded Labs on Ironwood implementation and Orchard vulnerability remediation. Comparable as a Zcash-focused engineering group with overlapping technical scope.
• Electric Coin Company: The original developer company of the Zcash protocol, founded by Zooko Wilcox. Directly comparable as a Zcash-focused development organization, though historically funded through the Development Fund rather than donations like Shielded Labs.
• Zcash Foundation: Core Zcash ecosystem organization responsible for protocol governance and infrastructure funding. Directly comparable as a Zcash support organization, with overlapping mission around network stewardship and coinholder representation.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ShieldedLabs

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Shielded Labs