Ethereum researcher unveils Beam Chain plan to overhaul consensus layer by 2027

Exploring post-quantum cryptography and reduced staking in Ethereum's bold upgrade vision

Key Takeaways

• Ethereum's Beam Chain aims to revamp its consensus mechanism by 2027 with SNARKs and post-quantum cryptography.
• The plan is to reduce staking requirements from 32 ETH to 1 ETH while not creating a new token.

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Ethereum researcher Justin Drake unveiled a plan to revamp the blockchain’s consensus mechanism through an upgrade called “Beam Chain” by 2027, announced during his presentation at Ethereum’s Devcon conference in Bangkok.

The proposal seeks to modernize Ethereum’s consensus layer while maintaining the existing data and execution layers. “This is just a proposal,” Drake said, emphasizing that implementation would require broad community support.

He confirmed that no new token would be created.

The upgrade introduces several technical improvements, including SNARKs for chain verification, post-quantum secure cryptography, and potential reduction in staking requirements from 32 ETH to 1 ETH.

The plan also aims to enhance processing speed and improve handling of Maximum Extractable Value (MEV).

The implementation timeline outlines specification development in 2025, client implementation in 2026, and comprehensive testing in 2027.

Two development teams have committed to building Beam Chain clients: the ZIM team from India using the Zig programming language, and Lambda Class from South America.

Drake noted that recent advances in SNARK technology and Zero-Knowledge Virtual Machines (ZK-VMs) make the upgrade feasible.

Validators would be able to choose their preferred ZKVM implementation, with verification occurring off-chain.

The proposal leverages existing infrastructure and expertise, including current networking libraries, serialization tools, and experience from established consensus client teams. This technical overhaul follows Ethereum’s transition to proof-of-stake consensus in 2022.

Last month, Vitalik Buterin shared a vision for Ethereum's future scalability, projecting that, with The Surge—a key phase in the protocol's Dencun upgrade—Ethereum will ultimately handle over 100,000 transactions per second. This ambitious goal leverages a rollup-centric roadmap designed to significantly enhance the network's throughput and efficiency.

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