Ethereum Roadmap Shows More Key Upgrades in the Pipeline

Ethereum has just gone through a long-awaited upgrade with Shapella. However, the Ethereum roadmap is long, and several more major upgrades are still in the pipeline.

The Ethereum Shapella hard fork last week was a major milestone on the network roadmap. However, it was just one step towards a fully scalable Ethereum ecosystem.

Several more upgrades are slated for later this year and in the years to come. These will transform the currently restricted network into a blazing-fast world computer and decentralized crypto-economy.

The Cancun hard fork will implement EIP-4844 in the third or fourth quarter of 2023. This will herald in technology called “Proto-Danksharding,” which will turbocharge rollups.

The technology effectively allows rollups to add cheaper data to blocks and reduce network fees.

Proto-Danksharding introduces something called “data blobs” that can be sent and attached to blocks. These blobs are not accessible to the EVM and are automatically deleted after a fixed time period.

As a result, rollups can send data at a lower cost, passing those savings on in the form of cheaper transactions.

Ethereum Roadmap Milestones

Distributed Validator Technology (DVT) is another major milestone on Ethereum’s roadmap. Currently, solo staking is a technical process for validators with 32 ETH, and staking services such as exchanges are centralized.

“DVT makes ‘squad staking’ easy for you and your buddies. Pool your capital and relax,” explained Bankless on April 20.

Obol Labs is working on a DVT solution that it expects to be deployed before 2024.

The third major milestone is proposer-builder separation (PBS). This aims to address the problems caused by MEV attacks (maximal-extractable-value). PBS aims to create a “division of labor between two crucial tasks of block-building: proposing a block, and building it,” reported Bankless.

This upgrade should cut down on MEV activity but will not be rolled out for at least another two years.

ETH Prices Retreat

Ethereum prices have taken a beating today as crypto markets correct. As a result, ETH was trading down 6.4% on the day at $1,954 at the time of writing.

ETH remains up 12% over the past month, but further losses could see the asset return to support around the $1,850 zone. Ethereum is currently down 60% from its November 2021 all-time high of $4,878.

Moreover, crypto markets have been due for a pullback, so today’s move is a natural part of market activity.