The Zcash Arborist Calls are bi-weekly protocol development meetings focused on tracking upcoming protocol deployment logistics, consensus node implementation issues, and protocol research._
This summary focuses on the last call that took place on 10/16/2025
Zebra update from Marek @ZcashFoundation:
Release Candidate for NU 6.1 is out!
If all goes well, it’ll become Zebra 3, the fastest version yet. Big thanks to community contributors for PRs improving error handling, RPC APIs & regtest mode.
Performance boost:
Zebra 3 delivers a massive sync speed improvement over previous versions — cutting sync times dramatically and bringing it much closer to zcashd, all while keeping the lightweight, efficient Rust-based design.
Zebra docs now include instructions for dynamic RocksDB linking, so devs can skip long compile times.
Kris from @ElectricCoinCo shared updates following the NU6 6.1 zcash release.
A surge in Zashi wallet users led the team to focus on optimizing the wallet backend and improving stability.
Also introduced authentication to the Zallet API and released an updated Zcash Keys crate.
New releases of the Zcash client backend and Librustzcash stack are expected soon.
Meanwhile, Daira Emma & Strad are focused on the Orchard crate review for Qedit, keeping progress steady as work shifts toward Zallet & zcashd deprecation.
Dorian from Zingo Labs shared steady progress on the Zaino RPC endpoints, with several completed and more under review.
On the Zallet side, the team is integrating a new chain index to replace the old local cache, a key step toward smoother, more efficient wallet performance
Pacu highlighted growing momentum across the ecosystem , increased public interest in privacy has boosted engagement from partners, developers, and contributors.
The Network Upgrade Survey is gathering real data on upgrade experiences, replacing assumptions with insights to improve future processes
Vivek from QEDIT shared major progress on ZSA-related ZIPs most updates are now complete and stable across Orchard, Librustzcash, Zebra, and test vectors.
A recent refactor to the Orchard note plaintext ZIP improves alignment with ZSAs & memo bundles, ensuring cleaner implementation consistency.
The team fixed a minor info leak issue spotted during review by Daira & str4d from @ElectricCoinCo and began implementing ZSA fee logic in Librustzcash.
Zebra and Orchard are now synced with the latest protocol changes, setting the stage for ECC’s upcoming Orchard ZSA review.
Mark from Shielded Labs shared that the NSM pull requests are nearly ready to merge, with just a few final reviews pending.
Once complete, the team will shift focus to ZIP 234 and ZIP 235, continuing steady progress on the Network Sustainability Mechanism.
Nate & Andrew from Shielded Labs showcased a live Crosslink demo the hybrid PoW + PoS testnet now runs seamlessly with auto-syncing nodes and dynamic roster management.
Next Crosslink workshop happens Oct 22, open for community testing and feedback.
The team is exploring ways to evolve Crosslink testnet into a near-production environment.
Ideas include staking incentives, bounties, and even experimental models like burning ZEC on mainnet to gain testnet staking rights encouraging real-world participation and validation.
Also preparing an emergency fallback patch a pre-tested, permissionless update that can revert to PoW if needed
This proactive safeguard balances security, decentralization, and user confidence as Zcash transitions toward staking.
Nate shared interest in standardizing ZEC burning and ways to post public info on-chain features that could open new possibilities for app developers building on Zcash
He mentioned ZecMec’s idea for a social app using ZEC burns to reduce spam (like a privacy-first Twitter alternative)
ZecMec is also looking for devs to help with Zcash wallet backend coding reach out if interested!
Dorian shared that he wrote a spec for a zaino endpoint that won’t be implemented in Zebra due to zcashd dependencies
The link to the spec is available in the Zaino Discord for anyone interested.