2024-01-03 Aries Working Group Call

Summary:

• 2024 Aries Roadmap 

Zoom: https://zoom.us/j/93803916577?pwd=UWdLSTJ2b0kvZTRyc1hZTUdQQ3ZFZz09

Recording: 

Date

03 Jan 2024 (7AM Los Angeles, 10AM New York, 3PM London, 4PM CET, 18H Moscow)

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Attendees

• Sam Curren  (Indicio) <sam@indicio.tech>
• Warren Gallagher (AffinitiQuest) <warren@affinitiquest.io>
• Akiff Manji (Petri Dish Development) <amanji@petridish.dev>
• Bruce Conrad (Pico Labs) <picolabs@sanbachs.com>
• Steve McCown (Anonyome Labs) <smccown@anonyome.com>

Welcome / Introductions

Announcements

Release Status and Work Updates

• Aries Agent Test Harness -- https://aries-interop.info
• Aries Shared Components - Indy SDK replacements
  • Indy Verifiable Date Registry - Ledger Interface https://github.com/hyperledger/indy-vdr
    • PR merged for caching in Indy VDR of Pool Transactions - Aries Frameworks should be adding that to
    • Release 0.4.0
    • Release 0.5.0 will have breaking changes, including did:indy branch merged into main.
  • Aries Askar secure storage - https://github.com/bcgov/aries-askar
    • Release 0.2.9
  • AnonCreds Rust - https://github.com/hyperledger/anoncreds-rs
    • Release 0.1.0
  • Shared Rust Library/CredX (AnonCreds) https://github.com/hyperledger/indy-shared-rs - being replaced by AnonCreds Rust
    • Release 0.3.3 Bugfix (bug was in the python wrapper)
      
    • Release 1.0.0 Embeds new AnonCreds CL Signatures library with fixes, performance improvements
• Frameworks:
  • Aries-CloudAgent-Python https://github.com/hyperledger/aries-cloudagent-python, Meetings: ACA-Pug Meetings, Documentation: https://aca-py.org
    • 0.10.5 Adds an important JSON-LD VC verification update
    • 0.11.0 has a full set of updates (includes 0.10.5 fix)
    • Addition of AnonCreds Rust library into ACA-Py now in main, using new wallet-type "askar-anoncreds"
      • Moving to ledger agnostic AnonCreds
    • Traction Sandbox now available - https://traction-sandbox-tenant-ui.apps.silver.devops.gov.bc.ca
      • Workshop Tutorial for using Traction, AnonCreds and Aries 
      • Repo - https://github.com/hyperledger/aries-acapy-controllers/tree/main/TractionIssuanceDemo
  • Agent-Framework-JavaScript  https://github.com/openwallet-foundation/agent-framework-javascript, Meetings: Framework JS Meetings
    
    • Accepted by TAC in OWF, repository has moved. See initial announcement here: https://github.com/openwallet-foundation/agent-framework-javascript/discussions/1586#discussioncomment-7815973
    • Looking for a new name, feel free to weigh in here: https://github.com/openwallet-foundation/agent-framework-javascript/discussions/1668
    • 0.5 in the works
      • Dropping IndySDK
      • AnonCreds Revocation
      • Dropping Node 16 support (EOL)
    • Continuing working on SD-JWT and OpenID4VC support
    • Started work on W3C issuance and verification of AnonCreds credentials
    • PR open for did:peer:4 support and did rotate protocol
  • Aries VCX (https://github.com/hyperledger/aries-vcx, Meetings: Aries-VCX Meetings
    
    • aries-vcx as repository now contains 2 project families:
      
      • aries
      • didcore
  • Picos as of pico-engine version 1.3.0 natively use DIDComm v2 (https://github.com/Picolab/pico-engine/blob/master/packages/pico-engine/README.md)
    • replacing ACA-Pico agents (https://github.com/Picolab/aries-cloudagent-pico) which are now deprecated
    • protocols implemented so far: oob invitation, trust-ping, basicmessage (more to be added https://github.com/Picolab/DIDComm-V2)
    • based on the SICPA didcomm NodeJS module
  • Aries-Framework-Go (Troy) #aries-go (https://github.com/hyperledger/aries-framework-go, Meetings: aries-framework-go) 
• Mobile:
  • Aries Mobile Agent React Native, aka Aries Bifold https://github.com/hyperledger/aries-mobile-agent-react-native, Meetings: Aries Bifold User Group Meetings
    • 0.4.0 in Bifold – including the shared components
  • Aries-MobileAgent-Xamarin aka Aries MAX (https://github.com/hyperledger/aries-mobileagent-xamarin)
• aries-mediator-service – a DIDComm Mediator in a Box
  • Update to use SocketDock?
• aries-endorser-service – an Indy Endorser in a Box (in development)
• Aries Akrida - Load Testing DIDComm based protocols
  • Added module support for different Issuer and Verifiers

Discussion Topics

• 2023 What Happened?
  • Unexpected potholes?
    • Expected faster progress on AIP 2
  • OWF emergence
    • Alignment / difference discovery
  • What progress was made?
    • Rework within projects
    • library work
    • dependency cleanup  - more involved than anticipated
    • Tuning given deployment experience
• 2024 Aries Roadmap
  • Annual Report due end of Jan, meeting early feb
    • Overview of the Annual Report process from the Hyperledger TOC
    • (More attendees than normal at the presentation to the TOC)
    • Aries, AnonCreds, and Indy all on the same schedule
  • Complete Unqualified DIDs CCU
  • Awareness / Marketing
    • Publishing a scalability report
    • Visibility for implementations and deployments
    • Bhutan - Verity
  • Alignment / Interop Efforts
    • JFF PlugFest
    • Aries Interopathon
    • OWF
    • Open Agent Framework
    • Etc.
  • AIP 2 completion
  • AIP 3 definition
    • DIDComm v2 / Trust Spanning Layer
  • Ledger Agnostic AnonCreds support within Aries projects
  • OID4VC Protocol support
  • LTS Efforts
  • Aries RFC
    • Aries RFC Status Review
    • Aries RFC Publishing in nice format
    • Better 'Start Here' Documentation
  • Cloud Reaching Ideas
    • Let's discuss next week
    • Mobile fragmentation (protocol/format/crypto/versions of all)
• WG Changes for 2024?
  • DIDComm related work
    • inclusion of (instead of linking) externally defined RFCs
    • possible code updates / replacement for didcomm.org
    • DIDComm UG needs better input on time slots for meeting
  • Alignment
    • DIDComm UG
    • OWF
      • AFJ has moved and might be renamed.
    • Open Enterprise Agent Framework – https://github.com/hyperledger-labs/open-enterprise-agent
  • Cross org checkins on a monthly(?)/quarterly basis?
• Open Discussion

Other Business

Future Topics

• State of the Aries
  • What have we accomplished
  • What is on deck for next year?
• State of AF-GO - New Maintainers or Archive?
• in Q1, projects are asked to do an annual report, review past year, plans for next year
  • More back and forth conversation. Multiple members need to attend presentation.
• Niels Klomp offered a deeper dive into the openid4vc related flows

• State-of-union of Aries projects
• decorator for redirection after proofs. - existing?
• in the Aug 9 call there was talk about EUDI compatibility. Maybe tracking the progress every now and then in these calls? Has there been any discussion about adding SD-JWT and OID4VC stuff to Aries Interop test suite?

Action items

Call Recording: