Vitalik Buterin, the co-founder of Ethereum, recently shared his thoughts on the future of the Ethereum protocol in an article called “The Possible Future of the Ethereum Protocol (Part 6: The Splurge)”. The article outlines ambitious plans to advance the Ethereum ecosystem, with a focus on improving the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) and enhancing the overall user experience.
One of the main objectives outlined by Buterin is account abstraction, which aims to make Ethereum accounts more convenient and secure for users. This would improve the transaction fee system, which has been a pain point for users, and make Ethereum more scalable and reduce transaction-related risks.
Buterin also highlights the importance of advanced cryptography in improving Ethereum’s long-term performance. However, implementing these improvements is a challenge, as the current EVM architecture limits support for advanced cryptographic implementations. To address this, Buterin introduces the EVM Object Format (EOF), which is expected to make the EVM more efficient, improve scalability, and enhance compatibility with complex cryptographic functions.
Overall, Buterin’s plans for “The Splurge” phase of Ethereum aim to push the platform towards a more efficient, secure, and scalable future. While there are exciting possibilities with advanced cryptography like indistinguishability obfuscation, practical limitations and the need for established security assumptions mean that core Ethereum will likely continue relying on existing systems for stability.