Taproot, the new update that will revolutionize the Bitcoin blockchain

First proposed in 2018, the update would expand the network's smart contract flexibility and offer unprecedented privacy, enabling even the most complex smart contracts to be virtually indistinguishable from regular transactions.

Apart from offering unprecedented flexibility when it comes to smart contract signatures, Taproot would also allow for more privacy when it comes to transactions.

Script is a few lines of code embedded in a transaction that goes on a blockchain-it defines how the coins in the transactions can be spent.

Before the coins in the transaction can be spent, a few things need to happen-ownership of the coins must be proven through a signature, a specific block height or date needs to be reached in case of timelocks, or a certain number of private keys out of a set need to provide signatures for the transaction.

Named after its inventor Claus-Peter Schnorr, the signature scheme is a set of mathematical rules that connect the private key, public key and signature of a transaction together.

Not only can several signatures in the same transaction be combined into one, but both public keys and signatures can be combined into "Threshold public keys" and "Threshold signatures." This represents a huge move when it comes to blockchain privacy, as multisig transactions would be virtually indistinguishable from regular transactions.

The "Private key x 2" and the "Public key x 2" would correspond, and the "Private key x 2" could sign messages that could be verified with the "Public key x 2.".

On its own, Taproot always includes a condition called the "Cooperative close"-all participants in a transaction can cooperate to spend the funds.

Only in a rare occasion where a cooperative close of a transaction proves impossible is the blockchain aware that the public key was tweaked.

This protocol upgrade could have a significant impact on the entire Bitcoin network-reduced block sizes would mean faster transactions and reduced transaction fees, making Schnorr the go-to option for everyone on the blockchain.