Starknet Community Approves Exploration of Independent Blockchain Future
In November, StarkWare will publish an initial whitepaper draft while investigating the development of a standalone, quantum-proof blockchain network.
A governance vote has concluded with Starknet's community endorsing research efforts to transform the network into a standalone, quantum-resistant layer-1 blockchain.
Strong backing emerged for the network's possible move away from Ethereum. After running for a seven-day period, the governance vote concluded on Thursday. Approximately 3,200 votes were cast in the poll, with 93.52% of the voting power supporting the proposed transition.
According to StarkWare, the non-binding poll achieved the greatest participation rate in the history of Starknet's governance. The company stated it chose not to cast votes, preferring to allow the community to make the decision independently.
The voting results enable StarkWare and the Starknet Foundation to move forward with investigating an independent L1 network. A separate, binding governance vote would be necessary to implement the actual transition. In the meantime, Starknet's operations as an Ethereum layer-2 network will continue unchanged.
We're beginning work on a whitepaper even before we start the weekend, and hope to release a draft for public scrutiny in November.
StarkWare CEO Eli Ben-Sasson told Cointelegraph
Starknet outlines next steps for post-quantum L1 research
A working group has been formed by StarkWare and the Starknet Foundation to investigate the suggested transition and create more comprehensive technical proposals.
According to the governance proposal, STRK will continue serving as the network's native token without plans for introducing a new token, and the existing bridges connecting Starknet and Ethereum will continue to operate.
The possibility of this transition was initially mentioned by StarkWare on Oct. 8, expressing worries about Starknet's reliance on Ethereum for maintaining security. While Starknet employs hash-based STARK proofs and features programmable accounts that can implement post-quantum signatures, the network's bridge infrastructure and data availability systems continue to rely on Ethereum's upgrade schedule.
A three-phase roadmap for achieving quantum-resistance was introduced by StarkWare in June, encompassing cryptographic enhancements, smart-contract migration processes, and infrastructure that depends on Ethereum.
According to StarkWare's Quantum Hub, testing has already been conducted on technology engineered to resist potential quantum attacks in the future, with successful processing of a transaction on Starknet's production network. The technology, however, is still in the experimental phase and has not completed a security audit.
A 2027 deadline has been established by Ben-Sasson for achieving quantum-resistance on Starknet, which would precede Ethereum's anticipated timeline.
Ethereum's target of 2029 to become quantum-safe is too late, and deadlines slip.
Eli Ben-Sasson