# Malachite with Adi Seredinschi

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/rustacean-station/malachite-with-adi-seredinschi
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/rustacean-station/malachite-with-adi-seredinschi.md
Podcast: [Rustacean Station](https://stenobird.com/podcast/rustacean-station)
Published: 2025-06-20T06:53:00+00:00
Episode link: https://rustacean-station.org/episode/adi-seredinschi/
Audio file: https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/audio.rustacean-station.org/file/rustacean-station/2025-06-20-adi-seredinschi.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/rustacean-station/episodes/malachite-with-adi-seredinschi
Duration seconds: 2571

## Resource

A deep dive into the engineering challenges of building Byzantine-fault tolerant (BFT) consensus engines. Adi Seredinschi explains why Rust's type system provides the necessary confidence for high-stakes distributed systems where Go's flexibility can lead to runtime surprises.

## Highlights
- Main idea: Rust's strong type system reduces the 'lack of confidence' often found in Go-based prototypes by catching errors at compile time
- Practical takeaway: When building critical infrastructure like Malachite, the goal is to move beyond 'hacky' code that runs to code that is provably correct
- Failure mode: Attempting to rewrite stable, reliable systems (like Tendermint) can fail if the primary goal is refactoring rather than solving a specific performance or business need
- Main idea: Formal verification via tools like Quint and TLA+ is essential for ensuring distributed systems are resilient against Byzantine faults
- Practical takeaway: The gap between Go and Rust development speed is closing, making Rust a viable choice even for rapid prototyping in modern workflows

## Topics

Rust, Byzantine Fault Tolerance, Distributed Systems, Formal Verification, Consensus Engines, Software Reliability, Model Checking, Blockchain Infrastructure

## Chapters
- 1:00 — Introduction to Informal Systems: Adi introduces his background in PhD research on consensus and his role at Informal Systems.
- 4:25 — The Challenge of Distributed Trust: A discussion on the fundamental problem of establishing trust between independent systems, such as in Bitcoin or Ethereum.
- 7:40 — The Mission of Formal Verification: How Informal Systems uses formal methods and Rust to foster trust in complex software infrastructure.
- 10:50 — Understanding BFT Consensus: An analogy comparing BFT consensus engines to replicated databases like PostgreSQL.
- 17:10 — Rust vs. Go for Infrastructure: Comparing the developer experience and the 'confidence gap' between Rust and Go in the blockchain industry.
- 23:20 — The Two Pillars: Quint and Malachite: Exploring how model checking and the Quint language serve as the foundation for verifying distributed protocols.
- 39:25 — The Perils of Rewriting: Reflecting on the engineering difficulty of evolving legacy systems and the importance of pragmatic maintenance.

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## Transcript

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