Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin announced the latest roadmap phase, “The Verge.” This proposes a breakthrough shift in blockchain technology that would enable transaction verification on previously unimaginable devices as small as smartwatches.
In a detailed blog post on Oct. 23, Buterin explained that The Verge combines two key innovations: stateless clients and cryptographic SNARKs (Succinct Non-interactive Arguments of Knowledge).
stateless client
The stateless client is designed to act as a complete validation node without requiring extensive hardware and requires only a few gigabytes of storage. This approach is in contrast to the current Ethereum blockchain, which is over 1 TB and is resource-intensive to run a full node.
By reducing the need for storage, stateless clients can lower the barrier to entry by allowing more individuals to participate in network validation.
Buterin also highlighted the role of SNARK in strengthening cryptographic verification. These are advanced cryptographic proofs that allow users to verify data without downloading the entire blockchain.
This suggests that SNARKs allow users to efficiently verify transactions with minimal resources and potentially on wearables and other small devices.
He summarized:
“Download the data, check the SNARK, and you're done.”
Maintaining decentralization
The entire Ethereum roadmap is part of Buterin’s vision to scale the network while remaining decentralized. The roadmap is currently in stage four.
Previous phases include “The Merge,” which moved Ethereum to a proof-of-stake (PoS) system, and the network’s ability to process up to 100,000 transactions per second, primarily through layer 2 rollups and sharding. Includes “The Surge,'' an expanded version of “The Surge.''
“The Verge” builds on these foundations with a focus on improving accessibility for validators. Buterin's goal is to democratize participation in the network by reducing hardware requirements and ensuring that decentralization is not hindered by the need for expensive setup.
Buterin's roadmap shows the platform's long-term potential to meet growing demand while maintaining its core principles of decentralization and accessibility. “The Verge” brings Ethereum one step closer to achieving its goal of becoming a highly scalable, user-friendly, decentralized, and global platform.
