What stands out to me about Midnight is not that it chooses between zero-knowledge technology and developer usability, but that it refuses to treat them as conflicting priorities.
From an architectural perspective, privacy is built directly into the foundation. Users perform computations locally and generate proofs themselves, while validators simply verify those proofs without ever accessing the underlying data. To me, that approach clearly shows that privacy is not just an added feature, but a core principle of how the system works.
However, strong technology alone does not guarantee adoption. Midnight seems to recognize that even the most advanced zero-knowledge systems have little value if developers cannot easily build applications with them. That is where Compact comes in. Instead of forcing developers to work directly with complex cryptographic primitives, it allows contracts to be written in a syntax that feels closer to TypeScript.
What I also find practical is how the tooling integrates with familiar development workflows. When Compact contracts are compiled, the system generates JavaScript as well, enabling developers to test and debug using common tools like Node.js, Jest, and VSCode.
In my view, Midnight is making a clear bet: privacy will only become part of real-world applications when it is both technically strong and accessible enough for developers to actually use.