Vitalik Buterin califica la reconstrucción ligera de Ethereum como comparable a The Merge

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin published takeaways from an updated version of the network's draft long-term roadmap in an X post Saturday, describing the multi-year 'Lean Ethereum' effort as a near-total rebuild of how the network operates. The post follows a meeting of Ethereum researchers in Berlin in late June. Buterin wrote that Lean Ethereum is a series of improvements arriving over three or four years, calling it 'the third major iteration' of Ethereum on par with the Merge, adding that 'almost every major piece of the protocol will be replaced.' The revised plan is published at strawmap.org, the draft roadmap that Ethereum Foundation researcher Justin Drake introduced in February, which outlines seven network upgrades through 2029.

The changes Buterin listed touch nearly everything: how the network confirms transactions are valid, the cryptography protecting it from future quantum computers, how quickly transactions become final, and how the chain stores its data. He said the transition can happen without breaking existing apps, writing, 'We've done this before (the Merge), we can do it again.'

Ethereum Planea un Nivel de Almacenamiento de Datos Más Barato

Buterin identified the storage changes as 'probably the single most disruptive part of the plan.' Today, Ethereum keeps all of its state data, from token balances to exchange contracts, in a single, expensive-to-maintain format; the plan would keep that system for the most complex applications while adding a new, cheaper tier for simpler ones.

As an illustration, he described a possible Ethereum in 2030 where the new storage tier holds 50 times more data than the old one. Most tokens, NFTs, and DeFi apps could use the cheaper tier, Buterin said, while complex systems like Uniswap's exchange contracts would stay on the existing one. No app would be forced to move, but he said migrating would be 'very cost-effective': a token redesigned for the new system could see transaction fees fall by more than 10x.

Seguridad Cuántica y Privacidad Elevadas en la Hoja de Ruta

Buterin said quantum safety has 'shifted up a LOT in priority.' The concern is that future quantum computers could break the cryptography securing today's blockchains, and the roadmap calls for replacing every vulnerable component before that becomes possible.

The most pressing piece, he said, is finding a quantum-safe design for blobs, the temporary data storage that Layer 2 networks rely on to keep their fees low. Buterin said that work has become urgent and has already been underway for months.

Privacy received similar billing. 'Privacy is no longer an afterthought, it is a first class goal,' Buterin wrote, saying new features are now designed from the start around the question of how private transactions would work through them. The stance extends a push he has led through efforts like the foundation's Kohaku wallet framework.

Both themes sit among the strawmap's five 'north star' goals, which include a quantum-proof network secured for the long term and private ETH transfers built directly into the base layer, rather than left to third-party apps.

RISC-V y leanISA Nombrados como Candidatos para Reemplazar la EVM

Buterin revisited the long-term push to move past the Ethereum Virtual Machine, the software environment that runs every application on the network. He named RISC-V and leanISA, two alternative computing formats, as the most likely replacements, though he acknowledged that outcome is 'still far away.'

His stated ideal is a network that runs entirely on the new engine, with the current EVM kept around as a translation layer so that existing apps continue to work untouched. A more efficient engine would make it far cheaper to mathematically prove that transactions are valid, a core requirement of the Lean Ethereum design, and easier to build privacy features directly into apps, he said.

In March, Buterin sketched a gradual path to get there: introduce the new format for limited internal use first, then let developers write apps in it, and only retire the EVM at the end.

The idea has been contested since Buterin first proposed a RISC-V swap in April 2025. Researchers at Offchain Labs, the core developer behind Arbitrum, argued last November that WebAssembly is the better choice; it did not appear among the contenders Buterin listed Saturday.

Hegota Identificada como la Última Bifurcación Pre-Lean

Buterin gave the effort a timeline marker, saying Hegota, currently slated as Ethereum's second upgrade of 2026, is probably the network's last thematically 'pre-Lean' fork. In other words, nearly every upgrade after this year will be part of the rebuild.

Buterin said Ethereum's capacity will keep rising steadily over roughly the next five years, with a large gas limit increase, meaning more room for transactions in each block, expected in the Glamsterdam upgrade. Glamsterdam, originally expected in the first half of 2026, has yet to activate, with Hegota scheduled to follow.

The post arrives about a week and a half after the Ethereum Foundation concluded a restructuring that cut 54 staff, roughly 20% of its workforce. Buterin closed by writing 'Ethereum is CROPS,' a reference to the censorship resistance, open source, privacy, and security properties he has said should define the foundation's narrowed focus.

Ether (ETH) was trading at roughly $1,780 as of Sunday afternoon Eastern Time, down about 1% over the past day, according to The Block's Ethereum Price page.

Preguntas Frecuentes

¿Qué anunció Vitalik Buterin en su publicación en X el sábado? Vitalik Buterin publicó conclusiones de una versión actualizada del borrador de la hoja de ruta a largo plazo de Ethereum, describiendo el esfuerzo plurianual 'Lean Ethereum' como una reconstrucción casi total de cómo opera la red. Lo llamó 'la tercera iteración importante' de Ethereum a la par de la Fusión.

¿Cuánto tiempo tomará la reconstrucción Lean Ethereum? Buterin escribió que Lean Ethereum es una serie de mejoras que llegarán en tres o cuatro años. Dijo que Hegota, actualmente programada como la segunda actualización de Ethereum de 2026, es probablemente la última bifurcación temáticamente 'pre-Lean' de la red.

¿Qué cambios de almacenamiento incluye la hoja de ruta? El plan mantendría el sistema de almacenamiento existente de Ethereum, costoso de mantener, para las aplicaciones más complejas, mientras agrega un nuevo nivel más barato para las más simples. Buterin dijo que un token rediseñado para el nuevo sistema podría ver caer las tarifas de transacción en más de 10 veces.