Main topics and highlights. Full discussion on reddit here.

Native Rollups and Execution Sharding in Ethereum

According to Justin Drake (EF researcher), there are two main concepts being discussed under the "native rollups" umbrella:

1. Martin Köppelmann's approach - Similar to execution shards (monolithic chains following a predefined template)

2. Justin Drake's proposal - Native L2s with customizable sequencing, DA, governance, and bridging that can be permissionlessly created

The key difference is programmability. Drake argues that native L2s with programmability better align with Ethereum's ethos.

These proposals aim to address an important issue: current L2s don't provide the same security guarantees as Ethereum since they have admin backdoors for upgrades. Native rollups could provide a pathway for L2s to have full L1 security while maintaining EVM-equivalence.

Many prominent rollup teams (Arbitrum, Base, Optimism, Scroll, etc.) have expressed interest in becoming "native" as it would be a free improvement provided by L1.

Roadmap Updates and Priorities

Several significant upgrades are in the pipeline:

1. Short-term (< 1 year):

   • PeerDAS to significantly increase blob throughput

   • EOF (EVM Object Format)

   • Incremental scaling improvements

2. Medium-term (1-3 years):

   • Further blob throughput scaling

   • zkEVM initiatives like ethproofs.org

   • Statelessness research

3. Long-term (4+ years):

   • Significant EVM scale improvements

   • Massive blob throughput increases

   • Improved censorship resistance (e.g., FOCIL)

   • Performance improvements via zk technology

Vitalik Buterin outlined two potential roadmap options:

• Option A: Pectra+EOF (2025) → Verkle trees (2026) → L1 execution optimizations (2027)

• Option B: Pectra+EOF (2025) → L1 execution optimizations (2026) → Poseidon hash function rollout (2027) → Expanded stateless clients (2028)

Beam Chain and the Future of Ethereum's Consensus Layer

When asked about the "Beam Chain" concept (the potential next-generation consensus layer replacing the current Beacon Chain), Vitalik Buterin stated that the transition would likely be an instant upgrade rather than requiring parallel chains running simultaneously as was needed for the PoW to PoS transition (The Merge).

Justin Drake added that the upgrade would be simpler than The Merge for several reasons:

• The same set of consensus participants (ETH stakers) would be on both sides

• Both systems would share the same timing mechanism (12-second slots)

• Much of the infrastructure is now battle-tested

• There's no urgency to disable wasteful mining as there was with PoW

L1 Scaling and Gas Limits

Justin Drake mentioned that post-Pectra, he expects to advocate for a 60M gas limit increase for the L1. This follows Vitalik's recent blog post arguing for moderate L1 scaling alongside L2 development.

The EF researchers recognize the need to balance L1 scaling with maintaining decentralization, suggesting that technology improvements now allow for modest increases to L1 throughput without significantly harming node requirements.

Rollup Interoperability and User Experience

Multiple questions addressed the fragmented L2 landscape and poor user experience. The researchers acknowledged these issues, with some noting that recent efforts toward standardization and interoperability are promising but much work remains.

Barnabé Monnot suggested that L1 and L2 needs aren't in contradiction - both want scale, but L1 has the additional constraint of maintaining verifiability. He proposed "unbundling more construction from verification" to help scale without sacrificing security.

Fork Coordination and Development Speed

Regarding development speed, Justin Drake pointed out that Ethereum has maintained a steady cadence of one major fork per year:

• 2020: Genesis

• 2021: Altair

• 2022: Bellatrix

• 2023: Capella

• 2024: Deneb

• 2025: Electra (expected within a few months)

Drake also suggested that as more client teams participate, it might become acceptable to proceed with upgrades when most (but not all) clients are ready, which could create healthy competition and prevent single teams from delaying progress.

Hardware Wallets and Security

On the future of hardware wallets, both Vitalik and Justin Drake shared their perspectives:

Drake predicted that most hardware wallets will eventually be integrated into phone secure enclaves rather than separate devices, with native integrations like Apple Pay potentially coming this decade.

Vitalik emphasized three critical aspects for hardware wallet security:

1. Secure hardware based on open source, verifiable stacks

2. Interface security that adequately communicates transaction details

3. Widespread availability through multi-purpose devices

Quantum Computing Preparedness

Vitalik addressed quantum computing concerns, stating that a "quantum emergency" would be determined by expert consensus and prediction markets. Timelines under 1-2 years would constitute an emergency, while 2+ year timelines would still warrant prioritizing quantum-resistant protocol upgrades over other roadmap items.

Research Funding and Academic Collaboration

The Ethereum Foundation has launched a $2 million Academic Grants Round for 2025, focusing on areas including:

• P2P security and network layer improvements

• Fuzzing and security testing

• Supply chain security analysis

• AI/LLM applications for protocol security

• Formal verification

The research team emphasized that they maintain ongoing relationships with academic researchers and integrate findings into the Ethereum roadmap continuously.

Community and Coordination

Several EF researchers expressed interest in improving communication and coordination with the community. Barnabé Monnot mentioned that new initiatives related to deriving a consistent roadmap with concrete targets would be shared in the coming weeks.

The researchers noted they're looking for more "lead architect" profiles who can integrate different ideas and coordinate large efforts, as well as research engineers capable of rapid prototyping.

The AMA demonstrates the EF research team's commitment to addressing both immediate technical challenges and long-term design considerations while navigating the complex tradeoffs inherent in blockchain protocol development.