Ethereum, one of the leading blockchain platforms, is set to undergo a series of transformative upgrades with the introduction of “The Splurge.” This initiative, spearheaded by Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, aims to tackle a multitude of challenges within the Ethereum ecosystem. In his recent blog post titled “Possible futures of the Ethereum protocol, part 6: The Splurge,” Buterin offers an in-depth look into the technical intricacies of these upcoming enhancements. The goal is to propel Ethereum toward a future that is more performant, secure, and scalable.
Decoding Ethereum’s ‘The Splurge’
“The Splurge” is crafted to address a variety of nuanced protocol design aspects that are crucial for Ethereum’s success but do not neatly fit into existing upgrade categories. These components, as described by Buterin, are “very valuable for Ethereum’s success” and demand focused attention due to their complexity and importance.
The Core Objectives of The Splurge
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One of the primary goals of The Splurge is to bring the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) to a more stable and efficient “endgame state.” This involves integrating account abstraction directly into the protocol to enhance both security and user convenience. Additionally, optimizing transaction fee economics is crucial to increase scalability while mitigating associated risks. Furthermore, the exploration of cutting-edge cryptographic techniques is anticipated to significantly advance Ethereum in the long term.
Enhancing the Ethereum Virtual Machine
Buterin stresses the importance of refining the EVM, noting that “the EVM today is difficult to statically analyze,” which complicates the creation of efficient implementations, formal code verification, and further extensions. The introduction of the EVM Object Format (EOF) marks the initial step in the EVM improvement roadmap, which is slated for inclusion in the next hard fork. EOF introduces several features, such as the separation of code and data, the transition from dynamic to static jumps, the removal of gas observability within EVM code, and the addition of an explicit subroutine mechanism.
EOF serves as a foundation for subsequent upgrades like the EVM Modular Arithmetic Extensions (EVM-MAX) and the integration of Single-Instruction-Multiple-Data (SIMD) capabilities. These enhancements aim to make the EVM more efficient for advanced cryptographic operations, reducing reliance on precompiles. As Buterin notes, “After EOF is introduced, it becomes easier to introduce further upgrades.”
Account Abstraction: A Step Toward Enhanced Security and Convenience
Account abstraction has long been a goal for Ethereum, intended to allow smart contract code to control transaction verification. Buterin explains, “At the core, account abstraction is simple: allow transactions to be initiated by smart contracts, and not just EOAs.” This capability could enable a range of applications, from quantum-resistant cryptography to seamless key rotation and improved wallet security.
ERC-4337 currently serves as a solution for implementing account abstraction without modifying the core protocol. It introduces a new object termed “user operations” and separates transaction processing into validation and execution phases. However, Buterin highlights inefficiencies in this approach, particularly the “flat ~100k gas overhead per bundle.”
Proposals for Improved Transaction Fee Economics
While EIP-1559 has enhanced average block inclusion times and fee predictability, Buterin acknowledges imperfections in its implementation. He points out that “the formula is slightly flawed” and “doesn’t adjust fast enough in extreme conditions.” The proposed EIP-7706 aims to address these issues by introducing multidimensional gas fees. This approach allows for separate pricing and limits for different resources such as calldata, state reads/writes, and state size expansion.
Buterin explains, “Multidimensional gas has two primary tradeoffs: it adds complexity to the protocol and to the optimal algorithm needed to fill a block to capacity.” Despite these complexities, the benefits in terms of efficiency and resource management could outweigh these challenges.
Exploring the Future of Cryptography
The introduction of Verifiable Delay Functions (VDFs) is aimed at improving the randomness in Ethereum’s proposer selection process. Buterin states, “Ideally, we would find a more robust source of randomness.” VDFs could offer a solution by providing outputs that are computationally intensive to produce but easy to verify, thereby reducing the potential for manipulation. However, challenges remain, such as “unexpected optimization” through hardware acceleration or parallelization. Buterin admits, “Currently, there is no VDF construction that fully satisfies Ethereum researchers on all axes,” indicating that further research and development are necessary.
Buterin also delves into the “far future of cryptography,” discussing advanced concepts like indistinguishability obfuscation and one-shot signatures. He refers to these as part of the “Egyptian god protocols,” extremely powerful cryptographic primitives that could revolutionize blockchain technology. Indistinguishability obfuscation allows for the creation of “encrypted programs” that perform arbitrary computations while keeping internal details hidden. “With obfuscation and one-shot signatures together, we can build almost perfect trustless third parties,” Buterin asserts.
Looking Ahead: The Path Forward
Potential applications of these advanced cryptographic techniques include secure decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) and auctions, universal trusted setups, and simplified verification of zero-knowledge proofs. Despite their promise, these technologies are still in their infancy. “There is a heck of a lot left to do,” Buterin concedes. Implementations of indistinguishability obfuscation currently face significant performance hurdles, and practical quantum computers capable of enabling one-shot signatures remain theoretical.
By addressing EVM improvements, account abstraction, transaction fee optimization, and exploring the frontiers of cryptography, Buterin aims to keep Ethereum at the forefront of blockchain innovation. While acknowledging the complexities and trade-offs involved, he remains optimistic. “Extremely powerful cryptography could change the game completely,” he concludes.
