The future of Ethereum: Part 1
Published Nov 01, 2024
Hey Edge readers, welcome back!
We’re kicking off a new series that dives into the latest Ethereum roadmap updates shared by Vitalik Buterin, co-founder of Ethereum. Vitalik’s six-part blog series, “Possible Futures of the Ethereum Protocol,” sheds light on Ethereum’s development path, starting with the monumental upgrade that changed it all: The Merge.
Here’s what we got for you this week:
  • Ethereum’s future roadmap 🔮
      • Vitalik kicks off his roadmap with ‘The Merge,’ highlighting Ethereum’s evolution into a faster, more accessible network.
  • DEX trading volume booms 📈
      • Raydium and Aerodrome are seeing rising volume and fees.
  • Layer 2 rollup milestone 🗞️
      • Starknet sets a new record of 857 transactions per second!
Stay sharp. 🫡
-The Exponential team
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The future of Ethereum: Part 1

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has laid out his vision for the network’s next steps in a six-part blog series. His blog series, “Possible futures of the Ethereum protocol,” explores the six major pillars of the Ethereum roadmap:
Part 1: The Merge ⛘
Part 2: The Surge 📈
Part 3: The Scourge ⚔️
Part 4: The Verge 🧩
Part 5: The Purge 🧹
Part 6: The Splurge 💎
There's a lot of info to digest here, so we’ve provided a high-level overview of what each major upgrade is focused on, starting with ‘The Merge.’
Part 1: The Merge ⛘
In the first blog post, Vitalik Buterin outlines a vision for building on Ethereum’s successful transition from Proof-of-Work (PoW) to Proof-of-Stake (PoS), known as “The Merge.” This transition reduced Ethereum’s energy use by over 99% and improved network security. Still, Vitalik sees room for enhancing Ethereum’s PoS system.
One main goal is to drastically shorten Ethereum’s block finalization time from 15 minutes to ~12 seconds. This improvement, called “single-slot finality,” would make transactions almost instantly irreversible, offering users quicker confirmation and greater security.
Additionally, Vitalik wants to lower the staking requirement from 32 ETH to just 1 ETH. The 32 ETH minimum threshold has been a barrier for many who want to participate in staking. By lowering the requirement to just 1 ETH, Ethereum would open staking to a much wider audience, encouraging a more decentralized network.
Vitalik also addresses enhancing security. He suggests introducing automated recovery mechanisms for Ethereum to bounce back from potential 51% attacks, making the network even more resilient.
With these upgrades, Ethereum aims to become faster and more inclusive—keeping it competitive and user-friendly as the network grows.
Next week, we’ll dive into Part 2: The Surge, and explore Ethereum’s next steps toward scaling.
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Decentralized exchange (DEX) trading volumes are soaring!
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October saw DEXs making waves, capturing 14.3% of the spot trading volume compared to centralized exchanges (CEXs). Platforms like Raydium and Aerodrome are leading the charge, making it a great time to be a liquidity provider in these protocols. More volume means more fees up for grabs, plus juicy protocol incentives – perfect conditions if you’re looking to dive into market making.
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In the news 🗞️

  • Starknet hits 857 TPS. Layer 2 rollup Starknet just hit a record 857 transactions per second (TPS) in a controlled stress test, signaling impressive scaling potential for Ethereum.
  • Base chain ships new fault proofs. Layer 2 rollup Base has launched fault proofs, a big step toward decentralization. Now, anyone can validate or contest transactions on the network.
  • Oracle wars heat up. Oracle provider Pyth has surpassed Chainlink in 30-day transaction volume, fueling competition in the oracle space.

Airdrop radar 🪂