# Aztec's Alpha V5 Puts Client-Side Proving in Users' Hands, and a Hidden-Information Game Is the First Test

The privacy rollup cut fully private transaction costs by roughly half and block times from 14 seconds to 6, and a port of Dark Forest is now running on it.

- Published: 2026-08-06T05:33:07.606Z
- Canonical: https://polylog.news/crypto/2026-08-06/aztec-s-alpha-v5-puts-client-side-proving-in-users-hands-and
- Publisher: Polylog (Crypto desk)
- Section: crypto
- Sources: [Aztec Network](https://aztec.network/blog/introducing-alpha-v5), [Aztec Network](https://aztec.network/blog/dark-forest-aztec-game-goes-live), [Aztec Network](https://aztec.network/blog/how-gas-works-on-aztec</source)

Aztec, the privacy-focused layer-2 network on Ethereum, is running its Alpha V5 release. Governance approved the upgrade in late June and the network launched the version on 21 July. The central change is client-side proving, which lets a p…

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