Ethereum Co-Founder Releases Roadmap to Address Quantum Computing Risks

Ethereum's co-founder Vitalik Buterin has released a roadmap outlining the steps necessary to protect the network from potential vulnerabilities that could be exploited by quantum computers.

The plan, which is part of the ongoing efforts to ensure the long-term security and sustainability of Ethereum, focuses on replacing current cryptographic methods with quantum-resistant alternatives. This includes hash-based signatures, recursive STARK aggregation, and other measures designed to mitigate the risks associated with quantum computing.

According to Buterin, four key areas require attention: consensus signatures, data availability, externally owned accounts, and zero-knowledge proofs. The roadmap proposes replacing Boneh-Lynn-Shacham (BLS) signatures with hash-based signatures under a 'Lean' consensus design, which would eliminate pairing-based cryptography.

Additionally, the plan suggests adopting native account abstraction to enable accounts to switch to quantum-resistant algorithms, such as lattice-based or hash-based signatures. However, these alternatives come with significant computational overhead and would require substantial gas reductions through vectorized math precompiles.

The proposed solution also involves recursive STARK aggregation, which would allow for the verification of thousands of operations simultaneously using a single aggregated proof. This approach aims to shift heavy computation off-chain while preserving deterministic verification.