Hayden 'Dax' Porter-Aylor

[ SUMMARY ]

Nuclear-Engineer-turned-Software-Engineer-turned-Founder. CEO of Zera Labs, where I lead R&D on zero-knowledge SDKs, compressed-token AMMs on Solana, and AI-agent cryptographic primitives. Concurrently a PhD candidate by publication in zero-knowledge proof systems (Poseidon-flavoured SNARKs, recursive composition, post-quantum considerations). Prior senior IC at ConsenSys, PMG, and a long Apex Systems contract at USAA; short stint in industrial Bitcoin mining at Foundry between Navy and software. Public security research on the npm + Rust supply chain. Speaker at Permissionless, EthGlobal.

[ EXPERIENCE ]

• Founder & CEO · Zera Labs

  Jul 2025 – present · Dallas, TX · hybrid
  • Lead the team building zera-sdk: a Rust-core, TypeScript-surfaced ZK toolkit (Poseidon hashes, Merkle proofs, ZK provers, MCP server for AI agents) consumed by the wider Zera ecosystem.
  • Shipped zeraswap (compressed-token AMM on Solana via Light Protocol) and zera-wallet-demo as the canonical UX reference.
  • Co-author of the public Zera Design System v3 (this blog runs on it).
  • Drove fundraising, GTM, and hiring while still shipping code — every PR touching the SDK core lands across my desk.
  • Maintain a public security-research line: Rusty Pipes (npm + Rust supply-chain) and AI x402 honeypot research.
  • Tagline in market: ZERA IS TRUSTWARE.

• PhD candidate by publication — zero-knowledge proof systems · Independent

  2024 – present · Remote
  • Publishing on Poseidon-flavoured SNARK construction, recursive proof composition, and post-quantum implications for ZK rollups.
  • Research artefacts shipped through Dax911/research, research2, research_phd, and zk-interviews repos.
  • Cross-pollinates with the Zera Labs roadmap: every paper has a corresponding production component in zera-sdk.

• Technical Specialist · Foundry

  Mar 2025 – Jun 2025 · Texas · on-site
  • Industrial Bitcoin mining: hands-on with ASIC fleet operations — power, cooling, firmware, on-call for site uptime.
  • First exposure to crypto-economic primitives at the hardware level — informed everything that came after.

• Senior Software Engineer · PMG

  Feb 2024 – Aug 2024 · Austin, TX · hybrid
  • Senior IC on a contract engagement; AWS-backed services with agile delivery.
  • Stack: TypeScript / Node.js across product surfaces; Agile Methodologies; AWS.

• Senior Software Engineer · ConsenSys

  Jun 2023 – Feb 2024 · Remote
  • Open-source contributions across the ConsenSys product surface alongside developer-relations content.
  • Mentored junior engineers and collaborated with DevRel leadership.
  • Speaker at Permissionless and EthGlobal on Web3 developer experience and security.

• Software Engineer (Apex Systems contract @ USAA) · Apex Systems

  Aug 2021 – Jun 2023 · San Antonio, TX · hybrid
  • Frontend and full-stack functional developer razing OOP code on a long-running USAA contract.
  • Stack: TypeScript / React / AWS / Agile Methodologies.

• Software Engineer · Better Fraternization Foundation

  Oct 2020 – Apr 2023 · Open-source contributor
  • Open-source contributions across the foundation's portfolio (Web Development, Node.js, and adjacent stacks).

• Software Engineer (Apprenticeship) · GTEK Solutions

  Oct 2020 – Dec 2022 · Seattle, WA
  • Apprenticeship route into commercial software while overlapping the tail end of Navy service.
  • Stack: Web Development, Node.js, and adjacent.

• Electronics Technician (Nuclear) · United States Navy

  Mar 2018 – Dec 2020 · Various
  • Maintained and operated electronics systems aboard nuclear-powered vessels.
  • Foundation in disciplined, safety-critical engineering practice.

[ SKILLS ]

• Languages: TypeScript · JavaScript · Rust · Go · Python · Solidity · Move
• Frameworks: React · Next.js · Astro · Node.js · Bun · Anchor (Solana)
• Infra & Cloud: Cloudflare (Pages, Workers, Browser Rendering, R2, Vectorize, D1) · Docker · PostgreSQL · Redis · NixOS / Nix
• Security: npm supply-chain analysis · Rust-based payload research · Smart contract review · Threat modelling · AI-agent honeypots / x402 research
• Cryptography: ZK SNARKs (Groth16, PLONK, Halo2 family) · Poseidon / Pedersen / Rescue hashes · Merkle proofs + recursive composition · Compressed-token state on Solana (Light Protocol) · Post-quantum signature schemes (overview)
• Founders / Leadership: Hiring senior ICs · Technical product strategy · Investor + customer comms · Cross-functional alignment · Publishing peer-reviewed research alongside shipping product
• Other: Public speaking / DevRel · Technical writing · Embedded / RISC-V (Milk-V Duo)

[ EDUCATION ]

• Independent / by-publication — PhD candidate, zero-knowledge proof systems · 2024 – present

  By-publication route. Output channel: peer-reviewed papers + ePrint + research repos under Dax911/.

• United States Navy — Naval Nuclear Power Program — Electronics Technician (Nuclear) · 2018 – 2020

  Reactor operations + safety-critical electronics. Foundation for all later engineering discipline.

[ CERTIFICATIONS ]

• Naval Nuclear Power Qualification — United States Navy · 2020

[ SPEAKING ]

• Permissionless — Web3 developer experience and security
• EthGlobal — mentor + panellist
• Building a ZK SDK Without a Cryptography PhD (proposed)
• Why your supply chain has a Rust problem (proposed)