Ethereum Foundation Maps 2026 Protocol Priorities as Major Upgrades Near
The Ethereum Foundation has released its protocol priorities for 2026, outlining a structured roadmap organized into three key tracks: Scale, Improve UX, and Harden the L1.
The Scale track, a consolidation of previous initiatives, focuses on increasing the gas limit toward and beyond 100 million, implementing EIP-7928 for block-level access lists, and advancing the scaling components of the upcoming "Glamsterdam" upgrade. This includes enshrined Proposer-Builder Separation (EIP-7732), further blob parameter increases, and progressing zkEVM and long-term state scaling work.
The Improve UX track is centered on native account abstraction and interoperability. Key proposals like EIP-7702 aim to make smart contract wallets the default without extra overhead, while the Open Intents Framework seeks to enable seamless cross-L2 interactions. This work is also tied to improving security and migrating toward quantum-resistant signatures.
The new Harden the L1 track is described as an insurance policy, focusing on post-quantum readiness, execution-layer safeguards, and enhancing censorship resistance through proposals like EIP-7805 (FOCIL). It also includes critical devnet and testnet coordination.
The foundation is targeting the Glamsterdam upgrade for the first half of 2026, bundling these priorities, with another upgrade, Hegotá, planned for later in the year.
bitcoinist02/19 20:32
