如何看待最近被热议的比特币新提案OP_CAT？
Author: Haotian, independent researcher Source: X, @tmel0211
How do we view the recently discussed Bitcoin proposal OP_CAT? Although it has not yet been officially merged into the Bitcoin Core code, it has already sparked extensive discussion in the BTC community. So, what problems does the OP_CAT opcode solve? What improvements will it bring to BTC's programmability if introduced? What impact will it have on the subsequent market evolution of the BTC ecosystem?
1) OP_CAT is a new opcode proposal, which developers jokingly refer to as being in a quantum entanglement superposition state between BIP420 and BIP347. The specific EIP is not important, as long as it is understood that this is a proposal that is still under discussion and has not yet been formally implemented.
In simple terms, OP_CAT can combine and process multiple UTXO unlocking script byte strings, which can improve BTC's programmability, program scalability, and chain verification computational complexity;
2) Similar to Covenant as a Bitcoin script extension proposal, the goal of OP_CAT is also to improve the extensibility of the Bitcoin script. The difference is that the goal of Covenant is to make Bitcoin transactions more programmable to support complex smart contracts and use cases.
In contrast, OP_CAT is easier to implement and aims to simplify the construction and execution of complex scripts to improve the efficiency of on-chain verification. Simplistically put, OP_CAT provides the ability to combine script fragments. Prior to its introduction, each UTXO script was executed independently. With OP_CAT, we can break down a complex execution logic into a series of combined simple script fragments, which are stored in different UTXOs and are created by different transactions. When a complete execution is required, the full node uses the OP_CAT instruction to concatenate these script fragments in order and trigger their execution.
3) With this combination capability, theoretically, many complex execution logics can be implemented on Bitcoin. For example:
1. Multi-signature plus time lock, which can cross multiple entities, multiple UTXOs, and complex execution unlocking conditions set by time locks;
2. Recursion and looping, which can make multiple script byte strings recursive and conditionally executed, continuously looping until certain termination conditions are met;
3. Modular applications, where commonly used script logic can be extracted and reused in multiple program execution fragments.
For example, Alice transfers money held on Platform C to Bob. Three entities must sign at the same time. If the signature time is exceeded on Platform C, Alice and Bob can sign together to retrieve funds. If Bob does not sign for a long time, Alice can withdraw the transaction. If Bob believes that the source of Alice's funds is problematic, he can reject them, and so on. This is just a simple example. In reality, it is possible to achieve more complex and granular control through the combination of script fragments;
4) Previously, BitVM executed complex operations off the chain, only implementing critical verification and settlement on the chain. This inspired a great deal of imagination about BTC's programmability and Turing complete computation. OP_CAT's 'recursive' combination execution on the BTC mainnet is a complement to this imagination, and OP_CAT is beneficial to accelerating the implementation of BitVM and reducing the cost of on-chain verification.
How can we understand this? BitVM originally needed to encapsulate off-chain programs into independent script fragments that could be executed by a single UTXO. Off-chain construction costs were high, and executing and piecing together these fragments on the chain would also require a more complex TaprootTree structure, meaning that the cost of interaction verification on the chain would be relatively high for BitVM programs. With the introduction of OP_CAT, the fragments encapsulated by BitVM off-chain would no longer need to be able to execute independently in each UTXO. On the chain, the UTXO unlock conditions can be accumulated to a certain degree before being aggregated and updated. Obviously, the combination of script fragments can greatly reduce the number and cost of chain verification interactions required.
In summary, the discussion around OP_CAT includes everyone's expectations for further enhancing the programmability of Bitcoin. If it is
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