AI Successfully Optimizes SHA-256 Boolean Circuit, Reducing AND Gate Count

burny_tech · x · 2026-08-10

A developer experimented with using AI to find a smaller Boolean circuit for SHA-256 tailored for MPC (Multi-Party Computation). The previously known best solution required approximately 22,300 AND gates.

The results showed that the AI managed to find a circuit with about 300 fewer AND gates (though the author notes the reduction is relatively insignificant). Interestingly, the AI then proactively asked the developer about exploring optimizations for circuit depth.

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