At the 2026 Hong Kong Web3 Carnival on April 20, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin laid out a five-year roadmap aimed at turning the network into a resilient “world computer,” combining a global data layer with verifiable computation. Speaking in the closing keynote at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, he said upcoming upgrades will focus on scaling, quantum security, protocol simplicity, and long-term reliability, with major milestones targeted through 2028.
vision: public bulletin board and global shared computer
Buterin described Ethereum as both a “public bulletin board” and a “global shared computer.”
On the bulletin-board side, anyone can publish messages, transactions, or encrypted data that remain visible to all network participants. On the computing side, the chain acts as a platform for programmable digital assets and logic, including ERC‑20 tokens, NFTs, and decentralized organizations.
According to Buterin, this dual structure enables open participation and self‑custody without depending on centralized infrastructure providers, forming the base for a global, verifiable infrastructure layer.
verifiability and mixed on-chain/off-chain design
Buterin stressed that Ethereum’s security rests on verifiability: users can independently confirm data integrity and protocol behavior. He argued that most real-world applications will continue to blend on-chain guarantees with off-chain computation.
Examples he cited included decentralized identity systems, prediction markets, and privacy-preserving protocols, all of which rely on on-chain proof and settlement while using off-chain components for scalability or privacy.
scaling: gas limit, peerdas, and zkevms
Addressing scaling, Buterin pointed to improvements already live, notably PeerDAS, introduced in the Fusaka hard fork on December 3, 2025. PeerDAS lets validators confirm data availability by sampling small, random chunks rather than downloading full payloads. This reduces bandwidth needs by an estimated 85% and has lowered data availability costs for secondary networks, directly affecting Layer 2 economics.
He said Ethereum recently processed a record 3.61 million transactions in a single day without major congestion, evidence that underlying capacity is expanding.
In the near term, the roadmap calls for:
- gradual gas limit increases to boost throughput
- deployment and maturation of zkEVMs to handle more complex computations while preserving verifiable execution
These steps are intended to raise transaction capacity without undermining decentralization.
post-quantum security: staged integration
Preparing for quantum computing was highlighted as a long-range priority. Buterin said Ethereum will introduce quantum-resistant cryptography in stages, working toward full protection across all protocol layers.
Current quantum-safe signature schemes based on hash and lattice constructions are far heavier than today’s signatures, requiring up to 3,000 bytes versus 64 bytes now and potentially consuming around 200,000 gas. Engineering work is focused on reducing this cost, including vectorization optimizations inside the Ethereum Virtual Machine.
He framed quantum-readiness as a multi-year effort rather than an urgent patch. In March 2026, the Ethereum Foundation launched a public site consolidating eight years of research on the topic, signaling that while a complete transition may stretch to 2029 or later, planning and implementation are being handled in the open.
upcoming upgrades: account abstraction and efficiency changes
Buterin outlined several protocol proposals targeted for the next upgrade cycle, including the planned Glamsterdam and Hegota forks in 2026, as the network moves toward smaller, more frequent updates.
Key elements include:
- block access lists to enable transaction parallelization
- gas repricing to better align costs with actual resource usage
- eip‑8141 (account abstraction), expected as part of the Hegota fork
EIP‑8141 is designed to embed programmable accounts directly into the base protocol. It enables multiple calls within a single transaction—one for verification and another for execution—supporting:
- native smart contract wallets
- transaction relayers
- advanced cryptographic signing methods
- features such as paying fees with alternative tokens, without depending on external workarounds
This is intended to simplify user experience and reduce reliance on third-party systems for core account functionality.
proposer-builder separation and decentralization pressure
Another pillar of the roadmap is enshrined proposer‑builder separation (ePBS). Today, most blocks are assembled off-chain by specialized entities and then passed to proposers via external relays. Data from 2025 showed over 80% of blocks were constructed in this way, contributing to centralization risk and potential censorship pressure.
Integrating proposer‑builder separation into the protocol is meant to:
- harden block validation security
- improve node synchronization speed
- reduce the advantage of large, specialized operators over smaller validators
- strengthen censorship resistance
Buterin said the goal is a system resilient enough to tolerate up to 49% node failures and still maintain safety, and able to preserve consensus even if participation falls to roughly one-third of nodes.
ai and formal verification to keep clients simple and correct
To ensure that client software behaves as specified, Buterin highlighted ongoing work in formal verification and AI‑driven code proofs.
Rapid progress in AI‑generated verification tools is opening new ways to:
- test protocol implementations
- detect subtle bugs
- enforce simplicity as the system evolves
The long-term aim is to keep Ethereum’s core rules auditable and stable even as new features are added.
chain built for endurance, with faster finality targets
Buterin framed Ethereum as “designed for endurance rather than speed,” prioritizing security, decentralization, and continuous accessibility over raw throughput.
Upcoming milestones include:
- faster finality, targeting one to three slots per block, or roughly 10–20 seconds
- broader use of zkVMs so that lightweight devices can verify the chain via succinct proofs, without running heavy computations
These changes are meant to lower the hardware and bandwidth requirements for full verification and keep node operation within reach of a broad base of participants.
expectations through 2028 and current network conditions
By 2028, Buterin expects Ethereum to handle significantly higher transaction volumes while preserving decentralization characteristics. The network’s recent ability to sustain elevated on-chain activity with an average transaction cost of about $0.24 underscores a divergence between usage metrics and market pricing, suggesting growing real‑world demand against a backdrop of relatively stable fees.
The move toward more frequent, incremental upgrades is intended to provide a more predictable development path and reduce the operational shock of large, infrequent hard forks.
long-term goal: global verifiable infrastructure layer
Buterin concluded that Ethereum’s ultimate objective is to function as a neutral, global infrastructure layer for:
- publishing data
- generating and verifying proofs
- enforcing high‑value rules and agreements
The roadmap he outlined positions Ethereum as a durable “world computer” focused on security, efficiency, and long-term reliability, with scaling, quantum resistance, and protocol robustness treated as ongoing, parallel workstreams rather than one‑off milestones.
Want a deeper foundation first? Explore how Ethereum works before its ambitious 2028 “world computer” upgrades reshape the network.
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