Ethereum has undergone significant transformations to improve its speed, security, and sustainability. The most notable change was The Merge, which transitioned Ethereum from Proof of Work (PoW) to Proof of Stake (PoS) in September 2022. This upgrade was a crucial step in Ethereum’s long-term roadmap to enhance efficiency and reduce energy consumption. Additionally, Ethereum developers are now focusing on scalability solutions, with rollups taking priority over sharding.
Ethereum remains the dominant smart contract blockchain, powering decentralized finance (DeFi), non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and other Web3 applications. However, to meet growing demand, Ethereum has been implementing a series of upgrades to address high transaction fees, network congestion, and scaling challenges. These improvements will ensure Ethereum remains the foundation for future decentralized innovations.
Proof of Stake (PoS): A Game Changer for Ethereum
Ethereum’s transition to PoS has eliminated the need for energy-intensive mining. Instead of miners competing to solve complex puzzles, validators are chosen to confirm transactions based on the amount of ETH they stake. This system is not only more energy-efficient but also improves Ethereum’s security and decentralization.
Key benefits of PoS include:
- 99.95% reduction in energy consumption, making Ethereum far more sustainable.
- Enhanced security, as attacks become more expensive and difficult to execute.
- More inclusive participation, as staking requires less hardware compared to mining.
Since The Merge, Ethereum developers have been working on further optimizations, including staked ETH withdrawals, which were successfully introduced in the Shanghai upgrade (April 2023).
The Future of Scalability: Rollups and Sharding
Originally, sharding was expected to be Ethereum’s primary scalability solution. However, due to rapid advancements in layer-2 rollups (such as Optimistic and ZK-Rollups), Ethereum has pivoted to making rollups the main focus for scaling in the near term.
- Rollups bundle transactions off-chain and submit them to Ethereum in batches, significantly reducing fees and increasing speed.
- Danksharding, a modified approach to sharding, is now being explored to support rollups by improving data availability.
Ethereum’s current roadmap prioritizes proto-danksharding, an intermediate step that will make rollups even cheaper and more efficient.
The Evolution of the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM)
Earlier, eWASM was considered a potential replacement for Ethereum’s smart contract execution environment. However, Ethereum developers have shifted focus to improving the existing EVM instead. Key enhancements include:
- More efficient execution of smart contracts to reduce gas fees.
- New cryptographic techniques like Zero-Knowledge Proofs (ZKPs) for better privacy and scaling.
- Optimized storage models to make Ethereum nodes more efficient.
By refining the EVM rather than replacing it, Ethereum maintains backward compatibility while ensuring a smoother transition for developers and users.
Conslusion
Ethereum’s upgrades are transforming the blockchain into a faster, more secure, and scalable network. The shift to Proof of Stake has already improved energy efficiency and security, while rollups and sharding advancements are set to enhance scalability. Rather than introducing entirely new systems like eWASM, Ethereum is optimizing its existing infrastructure, making it more developer-friendly and future-proof.
These ongoing innovations position Ethereum as the backbone of Web3, enabling the next wave of decentralized applications and financial systems. With layer-2 solutions, smart contract optimizations, and continuous upgrades, Ethereum is set to remain the leading smart contract platform for years to come.
