Ethereum researcher proposes accelerated 2028 deadline for quantum-proof upgrade

Ethereum researcher proposes accelerated 2028 deadline for quantum-proof upgrade

Justin Drake, a key Ethereum researcher, has proposed moving up the blockchain's quantum-resistant transition to December 2028, pushing the timeline forward by twelve months from the current plan.

Justin Drake, a researcher working with the Ethereum Foundation, has set his sights on December 2028 as the target date for finalizing Ethereum's transition to post-quantum and post-AI resistance, moving the goal forward by one year compared to the foundation's current quantum-resistance timeline.

During his presentation at Devcon 8 in Mumbai on Tuesday, Drake laid out details of the expedited schedule. "Our hope is that by December 2028 we'll be able to wrap up the full post-quantum and post-AI transition," Drake said, noting that the development team has a 24-month window to implement three more network upgrades.

The roadmap released by the Ethereum Foundation in September had set December 2029 as the target date for implementing quantum resistance throughout Ethereum's execution, consensus and data layers.

While Drake's comments indicate a more aggressive approach to the timeline, they do not officially supersede the foundation's current roadmap, which has a scheduled review planned for January 2027.

Back in August, Drake had presented plans for production-ready leanVM technology to be completed in 2027, with post-quantum implementations rolling out across all three of Ethereum's layers during 2028.

The proposed timeline has attracted criticism from developers working on other blockchain projects. In October, the Starknet community voted in favor of funding research into transforming into a standalone post-quantum layer-1 network.

Eli Ben-Sasson, CEO of StarkWare, had previously expressed to Cointelegraph that Ethereum's 2029 timeline was "too late," expressing concern that the deadlines might be pushed back further.