What is Proof of Time?

A revolutionary consensus mechanism where time itself becomes a cryptographically verifiable resource, achieving sub-second slots with predictable ordering and strong finality.

Invented by

Jihun Kim

Founder & CTO, Alpsoft Inc.

Seoul, South Korea

The Essence of PoT

Zamora's PoT cryptographically proves the passage of time to determine block order through a combination of continuous VDF tape, decentralized time beacons, and stake-based finality, achieving predictable sub-second ordering with strong finality.

Three Core Components

1

Global Time Tape (GTT: VDF Tape)

Each slot progresses a continuous VDF (Verifiable Delay Function) by r steps, generating output y_s and proof π_s.

y_s = f^r(y_{s-1})// Where r = minimum steps per slot

VDF is inherently sequential and cannot be parallelized, guaranteeing that minimum time Δ has actually passed between blocks.

2

Decentralized Time Beacon (DTB)

Multiple independent timekeeper committees read diverse time sources (GNSS/GPSDO, PTP/NTP, atomic clocks) and aggregate them using BLS threshold signatures.

B_s = ⟨slot, unix_time, jitter_bound, entropy, σ_threshold⟩
  • • Provides real-world time bounds with tolerance limits
  • • Supplies entropy for leader selection and randomness
  • • No single clock can manipulate the network time
3

PoS Finality Overlay (FFG-style)

While PoT handles ordering and fast block production, an FFG-style PoS layer provides deterministic finality. Checkpoints every epoch (~60s) with 2/3+ validator votes achieve finality in ~2 epochs.

~2 min
Finality Time
2/3+
Required Votes

Ready to Build with Time?

Join the revolution where time becomes the fundamental building block of consensus