Ethereum’s Vitalik Buterin Outlines New Scaling Vision
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has published a blog post on X outlining his latest vision for scaling the blockchain, arguing the network can boost capacity in the near term while laying the groundwork for a longer-term shift to advanced cryptography and data-heavy “blobs” that would change how Ethereum is validated.
Shifting Focus to Base Layer Scaling
The post reflects Buterin’s renewed focus on scaling Ethereum’s base layer, after several years in which much of the ecosystem’s scaling strategy centered on layer-2 rollups. This plan follows the Ethereum Foundation’s publication of a ‘strawmap’ aimed at making the network more efficient in the long term.
Short-Term Throughput Improvements
In the short term, Buterin suggests Ethereum can safely increase throughput by making blocks easier and faster to check. Upcoming upgrades will allow the computers that run Ethereum to review different parts of a block simultaneously, rather than processing everything step by step. Changes to how blocks are built, implementing ePBS, will also allow the network to use more of each 12-second processing window, rather than finishing early out of caution. This is slated for implementation in the upcoming Glamsterdam upgrade.
The result: Ethereum should be able to fit more transactions into each block without increasing the risk of errors or instability.
Rethinking Transaction Fee Calculation (“Gas”)
A major piece of the plan involves rethinking how transaction fees – known as “gas” – are calculated. Buterin argues that not all activity on Ethereum puts the same strain on the network. There’s a significant difference between using computing power temporarily and permanently adding new data that every Ethereum computer, or node, must store forever.
Currently, these costs are largely bundled together. However, creating new permanent data – such as deploying a new contract – increases the blockchain’s long-term size, making it more expensive to run a node over time. This, in turn, risks pushing out smaller operators. Buterin’s proposal would make long-term storage more expensive while allowing more room for everyday transaction processing. In effect, Ethereum could handle more activity without dramatically increasing how prompt the blockchain grows.
The goal, he argues, is to avoid a future in which Ethereum processes more transactions but becomes so data-intensive that only large, well-funded players can afford to participate.
Long-Term Vision: Zero-Knowledge Proofs and “Blobs”
Longer term, Buterin envisions Ethereum leaning more heavily on zero-knowledge proofs (a private verification method) and expanded data capacity through so-called blobs. Originally introduced to help layer-2 networks post transaction data more cheaply, blobs could eventually carry Ethereum’s own transaction data – a shift that would allow validators to confirm activity without re-running every transaction themselves.
Recent Ethereum Foundation Leadership Shake-Up
This scaling plan comes amid a significant leadership shake-up within the Ethereum Foundation. Vitalik Buterin labeled inflammatory X posts about the head of the Ethereum Foundation as “pure evil,” signaling a move to improve technical expertise and communication within the organization. Buterin has stated the changes are not intended to centralize or politicize the foundation.
Past Security Concerns
Ethereum and its key figures have faced security challenges. In September 2023, Vitalik Buterin’s X account was hacked, resulting in losses exceeding $691,000 for victims who clicked on a malicious link promoting a fake NFT.