Ethereum research group Ethlabs said it will withdraw its proposal to speed up Ethereum block production from the planned Hegotá upgrade, and is urging core developers to prepare the network for quantum attacks by 2027, according to a report by Cointelegraph. The report dates the announcement to a Wednesday; the exact date was not specified in the dossier.
The proposal has not been adopted. Cointelegraph reported that Ethereum core developers have not approved it.
What Ethlabs proposes
Ethlabs outlined a proposed roadmap it calls “pqai27”, which aims to protect Ethereum against threats from quantum computing and increasingly capable artificial intelligence. The group also said upgrades unrelated to this goal should be reconsidered.
The withdrawn proposal is Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP) 8198, known as Quick Slots, which Ethlabs had previously backed. According to the report, it would initially have cut the slot time from 12 seconds to 10 seconds. Ethlabs said it will redirect resources to pqai27 but still intends to pursue faster slots in 2028.
Implications for Hegotá and Glamsterdam
For Hegotá, Ethlabs said FOCIL, a planned censorship-resistance feature, should go ahead only if it does not jeopardize quantum readiness. The group described Frame Transactions, which would allow more flexible account authentication, as central to the proposed transition.
Ethlabs said Glamsterdam, the upgrade that comes before Hegotá, should proceed as planned.
Timelines differ
Ethlabs’ 2027 target is earlier than the one in the Ethereum Foundation’s published roadmap, which still aims for quantum resistance in December 2029, according to Cointelegraph. The outlet also noted that researcher Justin Drake said at Devcon that he hopes to complete the transition in 2028.
Several points remain open: whether core developers will adopt pqai27 or change the scope of Hegotá, whether the Ethereum Foundation will revise its 2029 target, and what the technical details of the roadmap contain beyond the summary reported so far.
Sources
- cointelegraph.com Cointelegraph — Ethlabs drops Hegotá slot proposal in push for 2027 quantum readiness Accessed
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