{"id":"thomas-coratger","title":"Thomas Coratger","content":"**Thomas Coratger** is a French security and cryptography researcher at the [Ethereum Foundation](https://iq.wiki/wiki/ethereum-foundation-ef). His work focuses on applied mathematics, formal verification of protocols, and the development of advanced [zero-knowledge proof](https://iq.wiki/wiki/zero-knowledge-proofs-zkps) systems. [\\[1\\]](#cite-id-kJGu9ReXRjiBAEPB) [\\[2\\]](#cite-id-B2KRcxl3e5KEQbvo)​\n\n## Education\n\nThomas Coratger completed a Science Baccalaureate in Mathematics at Lycée Bellevue (2011–2014), graduating with distinction. He then earned an Engineering degree in Mechanical Engineering and Numerical Simulation from INSA Toulouse – Institut National des Sciences Appliquées de Toulouse (2014–2019), with training spanning mechanical design, structural analysis, numerical simulation (applied mathematics, algorithms, and fluid mechanics), mechatronics, thermodynamics, heat transfer, microfluidics, and composite structures. During this period, he also studied at Glasgow Caledonian University (2016–2017) in Computer-Aided Mechanical Engineering, including an Erasmus semester from September 2016 to January 2017 focused on mathematics, materials and manufacturing, thermodynamics and fluid mechanics, and engineering design/analysis. In 2019, he completed entrepreneurship training at CFA Midisup. He later earned a PhD in Applied Mathematics at Aix-Marseille University (2019–2022), where his research centered on Lattice Boltzmann numerical simulation for compressible flows. [\\[5\\]](#cite-id-xn1tE29amVosZn2C) \n\n## Career\n\n### Early Engineering\n\nThomas Coratger began his professional career as an Apprentice Engineer at Expleo Group in Toulouse (Sep 2017–Sep 2019), where he built Excel/VBA tools for continuous improvement and carried out structural calculations on engine pylons, including FEM-based analysis work. [\\[5\\]](#cite-id-xn1tE29amVosZn2C) \n\n### Blockchain Engineering and Teaching \n\nAfter his PhD, Coratger moved into blockchain R\\&D. He joined Grindery.io as a Blockchain Developer & Researcher (Aug 2022–Jan 2023) working on a Web2/Web3 automation system, then became Blockchain Lead Developer & Researcher (Jan 2023–Mar 2024), contributing to oracle and cross-chain communication systems and cross-chain [DeFi](https://iq.wiki/wiki/defi). In parallel, he taught as a Blockchain Teacher at CFA Sup de Vinci in Paris (Dec 2022–Jan 2024), covering the theoretical foundations and applications of [blockchain](https://iq.wiki/wiki/blockchain) technology. [\\[5\\]](#cite-id-xn1tE29amVosZn2C) \n\n### ZK and Ethereum\n\nIn Apr 2024, Coratger joined Kakarot zkEVM as a Core Developer (Apr 2024–Jan 2025), helping build an EVM-compatible ZK-rollup leveraging Cairo aimed at accelerating ZK innovation on [Ethereum](https://iq.wiki/wiki/ethereum). He then moved to the [Ethereum Foundation](https://iq.wiki/wiki/ethereum-foundation-ef) as a Cryptographic Engineer (Dec 2024–Jan 2026) within the Applied Research Group (ARG). In Jan 2026, he became [Post-Quantum Ethereum Team](https://iq.wiki/wiki/post-quantum-security-team) Leader (Jan 2026–present), leading research and engineering of post-quantum cryptography for Ethereum. [\\[5\\]](#cite-id-xn1tE29amVosZn2C) \n\n## Research and Contributions to Ethereum\n\nCoratger's work spans several critical areas of blockchain security and scalability, including post-quantum cryptography, formal verification, and zero-knowledge proofs.\n\n### Formal Verification and the `leanEthereum` Project\n\nCoratger is a significant contributor to the `leanEthereum` project, an initiative dedicated to creating a formal, machine-verifiable specification of the [Ethereum](https://iq.wiki/wiki/ethereum) consensus protocol using the Lean proof assistant. The goal of formal verification is to mathematically prove the correctness of the protocol's logic, thereby increasing security assurances and eliminating potential bugs before implementation. [\\[7\\]](#cite-id-03THHh6zQKZbZNSh)​\n\nHis work is concentrated in the `leanSpec` repository, where he has implemented and tested core components of the consensus mechanism. This includes logic for attestations, block building, state transitions, and the justification and finalization of blocks. He has also contributed to integrating cryptographic primitives, such as the Poseidon2 hash function, and ensuring compatibility with other [Ethereum](https://iq.wiki/wiki/ethereum) clients. [\\[7\\]](#cite-id-03THHh6zQKZbZNSh)​\n\n#### WHIR Protocol\n\nOn August 18, 2025, Coratger and co-author Giacomo Fenzi published a research post titled \"WHIR for Ethereum.\" The paper introduced WHIR, a novel hash-based protocol for proximity testing, a component used in modern zk-SNARKs. WHIR is designed to be faster, produce smaller proofs, and be post-quantum secure, aligning with his broader security work. [\\[3\\]](#cite-id-NBe6dBlRpZiIB9H7)​\n\n#### STARK-based Proving Systems\n\nCoratger is also a contributor to the development of STARK-based proving systems. He has made contributions to `Plonky3`, an open-source, STARK-based proving system, where he has submitted optimizations for matrix operations. His personal GitHub repositories also contain explorations in Rust related to polynomial interactive oracle proofs (PIOPs) and other cryptographic components of proving systems. [\\[7\\]](#cite-id-03THHh6zQKZbZNSh)​\n\n### Publications and Technical Writings\n\nCoratger actively publishes technical research and educational material. He is a co-author of EIP-7562, an [Ethereum Improvement Proposal](https://iq.wiki/wiki/ethereum-improvement-proposal-eip) for adding precompiles for the BLS12-381 elliptic curve to the EVM, which would support more efficient cryptographic operations on-chain. [\\[5\\]](#cite-id-xn1tE29amVosZn2C)​\n\nHe is also a contributor to the \"zkEVM book,\" a work-in-progress publication from the [Ethereum](https://iq.wiki/wiki/ethereum) Foundation's zkEVM team aimed at educating engineers and researchers. [\\[3\\]](#cite-id-NBe6dBlRpZiIB9H7)​\n\nHis public research notes on HackMD cover a wide range of topics, including:\n\n* *Lean Consensus: 2026 Plan* (November 2025)\n* *Understanding Ligerito: A Fast, Recursive Polynomial Commitment Scheme* (December 2025)\n* *Optimizing the Sum-Check Prover* (October 2025)\n* *Memory Models & Lookup Arguments in leanVM* (September 2025)\n\nThese writings, along with his open-source repositories like `lea-n`, `univ-sumcheck-rs`, and `bls12-377-ark`, document his deep engagement with applied cryptography. [\\[4\\]](#cite-id-heyFFg2UqjDg7xbZ)​","summary":"Thomas Coratger is a security researcher at the Ethereum Foundation leading the Post-Quantum (PQ) security team. 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