Argus VM (AVM) - HyperPax Docs

Overview

ArgusVM is a register-based virtual machine designed for HyperPaxeer’s dual-VM architecture. It is the execution environment for the Argus capital-orchestration layer — a C++ runtime that handles risk engines, funded smart-wallet management, and capital allocation. Smart contracts are written in ArgLang, a statically typed language with Rust-inspired syntax that compiles to .avm bytecode.

Register-Based

Faster execution than stack-based VMs (no push/pop overhead)

256-bit Native

First-class support for cryptographic operations

EVM Compatible

Compatible with EVM but not dependent on it

Core Design Principles

Register-based — 32 general-purpose 256-bit registers eliminate push/pop overhead
256-bit native — first-class support for cryptographic operations and large integers
Deterministic — guaranteed identical output for identical input across all nodes
Gas-metered — every operation has a fixed gas cost
Sandboxed — no host-system access except whitelisted syscalls

Architecture

Register Set

ArgusVM uses 32 general-purpose 256-bit registers plus special-purpose registers:

// General-purpose registers (256-bit)
r0-r31    : 32 general-purpose registers

// Special-purpose registers (64-bit)
pc        : Program counter
sp        : Stack pointer (for call frames)
fp        : Frame pointer (for local variables)
gas       : Remaining gas
status    : Status flags

Status Flags

64-bit status register with condition flags:

bit 0: ZERO      - Last operation result was zero
bit 1: CARRY     - Arithmetic carry occurred
bit 2: OVERFLOW  - Arithmetic overflow occurred
bit 3: HALT      - Execution halted
bit 4: REVERT    - Transaction should revert
bit 5-63: Reserved

Memory Model

ArgusVM uses a segmented memory model optimized for smart contracts:

Memory Layout

┌─────────────────────────┐ 0x00000000
│   Code Segment          │ (Read-only, contract bytecode)
│   (Max 24KB)            │
├─────────────────────────┤ 0x00006000
│   Data Segment          │ (Read/Write, initialized data)
│   (Max 8KB)             │
├─────────────────────────┤ 0x00008000
│   Stack                 │ (Read/Write, grows downward)
│   (Max 64KB)            │
├─────────────────────────┤ 0x00018000
│   Heap                  │ (Read/Write, dynamic allocation)
│   (Max 128KB)           │
└─────────────────────────┘ 0x00038000

Storage (Persistent State)

Key-value store: bytes32 → bytes32
Accessed via: SLOAD and SSTORE opcodes
Gas costs:
- SLOAD: 200 gas (cold), 100 gas (warm)
- SSTORE: 5000 gas (cold), 200 gas (warm)

Instruction Set Architecture (ISA)

Instruction Format

Fixed-width 64-bit instructions:

┌────────┬────────┬────────┬────────┬────────────────┐
│ opcode │  dst   │  src1  │  src2  │   immediate    │
│ 8-bit  │ 8-bit  │ 8-bit  │ 8-bit  │    32-bit      │
└────────┴────────┴────────┴────────┴────────────────┘

Opcode Categories

0x00  NOP                    - No operation
0x01  ADD   dst, src1, src2  - dst = src1 + src2
0x02  SUB   dst, src1, src2  - dst = src1 - src2
0x03  MUL   dst, src1, src2  - dst = src1 * src2
0x04  DIV   dst, src1, src2  - dst = src1 / src2 (unsigned)
0x05  SDIV  dst, src1, src2  - dst = src1 / src2 (signed)
0x06  MOD   dst, src1, src2  - dst = src1 % src2
0x07  EXP   dst, src1, src2  - dst = src1 ** src2
0x08  ADDMOD dst, src1, src2 - dst = (src1 + src2) % imm
0x09  MULMOD dst, src1, src2 - dst = (src1 * src2) % imm

0x10  AND   dst, src1, src2  - dst = src1 & src2
0x11  OR    dst, src1, src2  - dst = src1 | src2
0x12  XOR   dst, src1, src2  - dst = src1 ^ src2
0x13  NOT   dst, src1        - dst = ~src1
0x14  SHL   dst, src1, src2  - dst = src1 << src2
0x15  SHR   dst, src1, src2  - dst = src1 >> src2 (logical)
0x16  SAR   dst, src1, src2  - dst = src1 >> src2 (arithmetic)
0x17  ROL   dst, src1, src2  - dst = rotate_left(src1, src2)
0x18  ROR   dst, src1, src2  - dst = rotate_right(src1, src2)

0x20  LT    dst, src1, src2  - dst = (src1 < src2) ? 1 : 0
0x21  GT    dst, src1, src2  - dst = (src1 > src2) ? 1 : 0
0x22  EQ    dst, src1, src2  - dst = (src1 == src2) ? 1 : 0
0x23  ISZERO dst, src1       - dst = (src1 == 0) ? 1 : 0
0x24  SLT   dst, src1, src2  - dst = (src1 < src2) ? 1 : 0 (signed)
0x25  SGT   dst, src1, src2  - dst = (src1 > src2) ? 1 : 0 (signed)

0x30  MLOAD  dst, src1       - dst = memory[src1]
0x31  MSTORE src1, src2      - memory[src1] = src2
0x32  MLOAD8 dst, src1       - dst = memory[src1] (8-bit)
0x33  MSTORE8 src1, src2     - memory[src1] = src2 (8-bit)
0x34  MCOPY  dst, src, len   - memcpy(dst, src, len)

0x40  SLOAD  dst, key        - dst = storage[key]
0x41  SSTORE key, value      - storage[key] = value

0x50  JMP    addr            - pc = addr
0x51  JMPI   addr, cond      - if (cond != 0) pc = addr
0x52  CALL   addr            - call subroutine at addr
0x53  RET                    - return from subroutine
0x54  HALT                   - stop execution (success)
0x55  REVERT                 - stop execution (revert state)

0x80  ADDRESS    dst         - dst = current contract address
0x81  BALANCE    dst, addr   - dst = balance of addr
0x82  ORIGIN     dst         - dst = transaction origin
0x83  CALLER     dst         - dst = message sender
0x84  CALLVALUE  dst         - dst = msg.value
0x85  CALLDATALOAD dst, idx  - dst = calldata[idx]
0x86  CALLDATASIZE dst       - dst = len(calldata)
0x87  CODESIZE   dst         - dst = len(code)
0x88  GASPRICE   dst         - dst = tx.gasprice
0x89  BLOCKHASH  dst, num    - dst = blockhash(num)
0x8A  COINBASE   dst         - dst = block.coinbase
0x8B  TIMESTAMP  dst         - dst = block.timestamp
0x8C  NUMBER     dst         - dst = block.number
0x8D  GASLIMIT   dst         - dst = block.gaslimit
0x8E  CHAINID    dst         - dst = chain_id

0x90  EXTCALL addr, gas, value, argsOffset, argsSize, retOffset, retSize
0x91  EXTDELEGATECALL addr, gas, argsOffset, argsSize, retOffset, retSize
0x92  EXTSTATICCALL addr, gas, argsOffset, argsSize, retOffset, retSize
0x93  CREATE value, offset, size, salt
0x94  CREATE2 value, offset, size, salt
0x95  SELFDESTRUCT beneficiary

Gas Model

Base Costs

Operation	Gas Cost
Arithmetic	3 gas
Bitwise	3 gas
Comparison	3 gas
Memory load	3 gas
Memory store	3 gas
Storage load (cold)	200 gas
Storage load (warm)	100 gas
Storage store (cold)	5000 gas
Storage store (warm)	200 gas
Jump	8 gas
Call	100 gas + target gas
Create	32000 gas
Log	375 gas + 375 per topic + 8 per byte

Memory Expansion Cost

memory_cost = (memory_size_word ** 2) / 512 + (3 * memory_size_word)

Execution Model

Contract Execution Flow

Load Contract

Load contract bytecode from state

Initialize VM

pc = 0
gas = tx.gas_limit
registers = [0; 32]
memory = empty

Execute Instructions

Execute until HALT/REVERT/OUT_OF_GAS

Return Result

Return result + remaining gas + state changes

Call Stack

Max depth: 1024 calls
Each frame stores:
- Return address (pc)
- Saved registers (r0-r31)
- Local variables
- Gas limit for this call

Syscall Interface

ArgusVM provides a syscall interface for cryptographic operations:

ID	Name	Input	Output
0	ecrecover	hash, v, r, s	address
1	sha256	data, len	hash
2	keccak256	data, len	hash
3	blake2b	data, len	hash
4	verify_ed25519	msg, sig, pubkey	bool
5	verify_secp256k1	msg, sig, pubkey	bool
6	bls_verify	msg, sig, pubkey	bool
7	bls_aggregate	sigs[], len	aggregated_sig
8	modexp	base, exp, mod	result
9	bn256_add	x1, y1, x2, y2	x3, y3
10	bn256_mul	x, y, scalar	x2, y2
11	bn256_pairing	points[], len	bool

Precompiled Contracts

Standard precompiles for common cryptographic operations:

Address	Name	Purpose
0x01	ECRecover	ECDSA signature recovery
0x02	SHA256	SHA-256 hash
0x03	RIPEMD160	RIPEMD-160 hash
0x04	Identity	Data copy
0x05	ModExp	Modular exponentiation
0x06	BN256Add	BN256 elliptic curve addition
0x07	BN256Mul	BN256 elliptic curve multiplication
0x08	BN256Pairing	BN256 pairing check
0x09	Blake2F	Blake2b F compression
0x0A	BLS12Verify	BLS12-381 signature verification
0x0B	BLS12Aggregate	BLS12-381 signature aggregation

Bytecode Format

File Structure

┌──────────────────────┐
│Magic Number (4 bytes)│ 0x41564D00 ("AVM\0")
├──────────────────────┤
│ Version (2 bytes)    │ 0x0001
├──────────────────────┤
│ Code Size (4 bytes)  │ Length of code section
├──────────────────────┤
│ Data Size (4 bytes)  │ Length of data section
├──────────────────────┤
│ Code Section         │ Executable instructions
│ (variable length)    │
├──────────────────────┤
│  Data Section        │ Initialized constants
│ (variable length)    │
├──────────────────────┤
│  Metadata Section    │ ABI, source map, etc.
│  (variable length)   │
└──────────────────────┘

Instruction Encoding Example

// Example: ADD r1, r2, r3
// Encoding: 0x01 0x01 0x02 0x03 0x00000000
┌────────┬────────┬────────┬────────┬────────────────┐
│ opcode │  dst   │  src1  │  src2  │   immediate    │
│ 0x01   │ 0x01   │ 0x02   │ 0x03   │ 0x00000000     │
└────────┴────────┴────────┴────────┴────────────────┘

Determinism Guarantees

Prohibited (Non-Deterministic)

The following are prohibited in ArgusVM contracts:

❌ System time (use block.timestamp)
❌ Random numbers (use block.hash + nonce)
❌ Floating point (use fixed-point arithmetic)
❌ Hash map iteration order (use sorted keys)
❌ External I/O (only syscalls allowed)

Enforced Determinism

✅ All arithmetic is 256-bit integer (no floats)
✅ Division by zero returns 0 (no exceptions)
✅ Out-of-bounds memory access reverts
✅ All randomness from blockchain state
✅ Fixed gas costs per operation

Security Features

Sandboxing

No file system access
No network access
No system calls except whitelisted syscalls
Memory isolation between contracts

Gas Limits

Prevents infinite loops
Prevents DoS attacks
Ensures bounded execution time

Reentrancy Protection

Call depth limit: 1024
State changes committed only on success
Revert cascades up call stack

Overflow Protection

Built-in overflow checks
Safe arithmetic by default
No need for SafeMath library

Performance Characteristics

Expected Performance

Metric	Value
Throughput	10,000+ simple transactions/sec per core
Latency	<1ms per simple contract call
Memory	<100MB per VM instance
Startup	<10ms to initialize VM

Optimization Strategies

JIT compilation for hot paths (future)
Register allocation optimization
Instruction fusion (combine common patterns)
Lazy memory allocation

Comparison to Other VMs

Feature	ArgusVM	EVM	WASM
Architecture	Register	Stack	Stack
Word Size	256-bit	256-bit	32/64-bit
Gas Metering	Yes	Yes	External
Deterministic	Yes	Yes	Depends
Precompiles	Yes	Yes	No
JIT Support	Future	No	Yes
EVM Compatible	Yes	N/A	No
EVM Dependent	No	Yes	No

Key Differentiator: ArgusVM is the only VM that is EVM-compatible but not EVM-dependent, enabling full ecosystem independence.

EVM Compatibility Layer

While ArgusVM is independent, we maintain full EVM compatibility through a translation layer:

Bytecode Translation

EVM bytecode can be translated to AVM bytecode:

Stack operations → Register operations
EVM opcodes → AVM opcodes
Gas costs normalized
Behavior preserved

Tooling Support

Existing Ethereum tooling works with ArgusVM:

Hardhat, Foundry, Remix support
MetaMask and other wallets
Block explorers
Bridge protocols

Migration Path

Seamless migration for developers:

Deploy existing Solidity contracts (via translation)
Gradually migrate to ArgLang
Optimise for ArgusVM architecture
Leverage native performance benefits

ArgLang

ArgLang is the statically typed, contract-oriented language that compiles to AVM bytecode. It combines Rust-style safety with Solidity familiarity.

Syntax

contract HelloWorld {
    state greeting: string;

    init(initial_greeting: string) {
        greeting = initial_greeting;
    }

    pub fn set_greeting(new_greeting: string) {
        greeting = new_greeting;
    }

    pub view fn get_greeting() -> string {
        return greeting;
    }
}

Type System

Integers: u8, u16, u32, u64, u128, u256, i8 – i256
Boolean: bool
Address: address (20 bytes)
Bytes: bytes1 – bytes32, bytes, string
Collections: Vec<T>, Map<K, V>, arrays (u256[10]), structs, enums, options

Function Visibility

pub fn public_function() { }              // public, modifies state
fn internal_function() { }                // internal only
pub view fn read_only() -> u256 { }       // reads state, no mutation
pub pure fn calculate(a: u256) -> u256 { } // no state access
pub payable fn deposit() { }              // can receive tokens

Control Flow

if x > 10 { } else { }
for i in 0..10 { }
while condition { }

match result {
    Result::Success(v) => { },
    Result::Error(e) => { },
}

Built-in Globals

msg: sender, value, data, sig
tx: origin, gasprice
block: number, timestamp, coinbase, gaslimit, chainid
this: address(this), this.balance

Standard Library

use std::math;         // min, max, abs, pow, sqrt
use std::crypto;       // keccak256, sha256, ecrecover
use std::collections;  // Vec, Map, Set

Compiler Pipeline

ArgLang Source (.arg)
    ↓ Lexer (tokens)
    ↓ Parser (AST)
    ↓ Type Checker
    ↓ IR Generator
    ↓ Optimizer
    ↓ AVM Bytecode Generator
    ↓
ArgusVM Bytecode (.avm)

Map and Array Storage

ArgLang maps and arrays use Keccak256-based slot hashing, similar to Solidity but adapted for register-based codegen:

Simple state → sequential slots (counter at slot 0, owner at slot 1)
Maps → keccak256(key || base_slot)
Nested maps → recursive hashing: keccak256(spender || keccak256(owner || base_slot))
Arrays → length at base_slot, element i at keccak256(base_slot) + i

Gas for Map Operations

Operation	Gas
Map read (`balances[addr]`)	~251 (KECCAK256 + SLOAD)
Map write (warm)	~5,251
Map write (cold)	~20,251

Resources

PAX-28 Token Standard

Native fungible-token spec for ArgusVM

Architecture Overview

Dual-VM design and precompile framework

Smart Contracts

Deploy Solidity contracts on the EVM layer

PaxSpot

Spot exchange built on four AVM-adjacent precompiles

Getting Started

Develop

Transactions

Architecture

Modules

Concepts

CLI

Resources

Validators

Setup & Configuration

Upgrades

IBC & Relayers

Exchange & Trading

Ecosystem

Documentation Index

​Overview

Register-Based

256-bit Native

EVM Compatible

​Core Design Principles

​Architecture

​Register Set

​Status Flags

​Memory Model

Memory Layout

​Storage (Persistent State)

​Instruction Set Architecture (ISA)

​Instruction Format

​Opcode Categories

​Gas Model

​Base Costs

​Memory Expansion Cost

​Execution Model

​Contract Execution Flow

​Call Stack

​Syscall Interface

​Precompiled Contracts

​Bytecode Format

​File Structure

​Instruction Encoding Example

​Determinism Guarantees

​Prohibited (Non-Deterministic)

​Enforced Determinism

​Security Features

Sandboxing

Gas Limits

Reentrancy Protection

Overflow Protection

​Performance Characteristics

​Expected Performance

​Optimization Strategies

​Comparison to Other VMs

​EVM Compatibility Layer

​ArgLang

​Syntax

​Type System

​Function Visibility

​Control Flow

​Built-in Globals

​Standard Library

​Compiler Pipeline

​Map and Array Storage

​Gas for Map Operations

​Resources

PAX-28 Token Standard

Architecture Overview

Smart Contracts

PaxSpot

Overview

Core Design Principles

Architecture

Register Set

Status Flags

Memory Model

Storage (Persistent State)

Instruction Set Architecture (ISA)

Instruction Format

Opcode Categories

Gas Model

Base Costs

Memory Expansion Cost

Execution Model

Contract Execution Flow

Call Stack

Syscall Interface

Precompiled Contracts

Bytecode Format

File Structure

Instruction Encoding Example

Determinism Guarantees

Prohibited (Non-Deterministic)

Enforced Determinism

Security Features

Performance Characteristics

Expected Performance

Optimization Strategies

Comparison to Other VMs

EVM Compatibility Layer

ArgLang

Syntax

Type System

Function Visibility

Control Flow

Built-in Globals

Standard Library

Compiler Pipeline

Map and Array Storage

Gas for Map Operations

Resources