Buterin outlines next steps for Ethereum’s proof-of-stake evolution

Vitalik Buterin Unveils Plans to Improve Ethereum’s Consensus Model with Focus on Single-Slot Finality and Staking Accessibility

Despite Ethereum’s successful Merge upgrade—transitioning from a proof-of-work to a proof-of-stake consensus mechanism—Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin believes there are still key areas where the network’s proof-of-stake (PoS) system needs improvement.

In a blog post published on October 14, Buterin acknowledged that while Ethereum’s PoS mechanism has advanced the network, there are critical issues that need to be addressed to ensure scalability, decentralization, and functionality.

Key Areas for Improvement

Buterin divided the improvements into two primary categories: technical and economic. The technical improvements are aimed at increasing the stability of Ethereum’s PoS system and making it more accessible to validators. On the economic side, Buterin highlighted the need for solutions to combat centralization risks and to enhance overall participation in staking.

1. Single-Slot Finality
   One major improvement Buterin is proposing is single-slot finality, which would reduce the current block finalization time from 15 minutes to 12 seconds (or even as low as 4 seconds). This improvement would significantly enhance the user experience for both Layer-1 and rollups and make decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols more efficient. Faster block finalization would also help reduce uncertainty and increase transaction throughput, improving the network’s overall performance.
2. Democratizing Staking
   Another priority is staking accessibility. Currently, a 32 ETH minimum (roughly $81,500 at current prices) is required to participate in staking. Buterin points out that this is a significant barrier for many people, and reducing the minimum requirement would help increase solo staking participation.

   “Poll after poll repeatedly show that the main factor preventing more people from solo staking is the 32 ETH minimum. Reducing the minimum to 1 ETH would solve this issue, to the point where other concerns become the dominant factor limiting solo staking,” said Buterin.

Proposed Solutions

To achieve these goals, Buterin outlined several strategies that could help improve Ethereum’s PoS network:

• Signature Aggregation with ZK-SNARKs
  One idea is to use ZK-SNARKs (zero-knowledge succinct non-interactive arguments of knowledge) for signature aggregation, which would allow Ethereum to process signatures from millions of validators within each slot. This approach, referred to as “brute force,” aims to enhance the efficiency of validators without compromising the security of the network.
• Orbit Committees for Chain Finalization
  Buterin also introduced the concept of “orbit committees,” which would be medium-sized, randomly selected groups of validators tasked with finalizing the chain while maintaining strong security. These committees would be responsible for ensuring that the blockchain achieves finality in a decentralized and secure manner.
• Two-Tiered Staking Model
  To address the accessibility challenges in staking, Buterin suggested a two-tiered staking model. This system would allow for two different classes of stakers: one with higher deposit requirements and another with lower deposit thresholds. This model would encourage more participation in staking while still ensuring economic finality and network security.

Looking Ahead

While the timeline for implementing these proposals remains unclear, Buterin emphasized that the changes are necessary to maintain Ethereum’s growth and decentralization. He stressed the need for continued research and development to strike the right balance between simplicity and functionality. Ultimately, Buterin reiterated that the goal is to develop a protocol that is “sufficiently simple” to be implemented on the mainnet, ensuring that these upgrades can scale with Ethereum’s future needs.