Many of Ethereum’s Some skeptics argue that the anticipated '2.0' Serenity upgrade, which aims to incorporate technologies such as sharding, Casper, and Plasma to fully enhance Ethereum's blockchain capabilities, is either unrealistic or not coming any time soon.
However, this week Vitalik Buterin: Co-Founder of Ethereum Buterin has once more claimed that significant advances toward fully realizing Serenity are underway and much closer than naysayers suspect.
Buterin made these comments in response to a tweet from notable investor and bitcoin analyst Tuur Demeester, who pondered 'Can money buy a scientific breakthrough?' following the Ethereum Foundation's (EF) announcement of allocating $19 million in spending for ETH 2.0 development on that day.
Counteracting claims that another scientific discovery is essential for Serenity's realization, Buterin pointed out that the foundational research for a 'complete implementation' had been concluded the previous year:
'We've already achieved all the necessary research breakthroughs required for a full ETH 2.0 implementation. This has been true for around a year now.'
https://twitter.com/VitalikButerin/status/1131045739168186374
The Ethereum community currently finds itself in a phase dominated by construction and preparation.
Earlier this month, EF researcher Justin Drake confirmed that the code specification for ETH 2.0’s “Phase Zero” —which will transition to a proof-of-stake (PoS) consensus— is on track for completion by June 30th.
This month also witnessed Prysmatic Labs, the team behind the 'Prysm' Ethereum sharding client, reveal the second ETH 2.0 testnet published so far this year. The test network enables users to practice validation through staking test ether.
During this preparatory phase, a critical audit is also underway. The code for the ASIC-resistant ProgPoW consensus algorithm , intended for the ETH 1.0 network ahead of Serenity's switch to PoS consensus, is undergoing scrutiny for critical bugs.
Investigating the Ethereum Foundation's Announcement
Ethereum Foundation's announcement on May 21st regarding its next year's plans quickly captured attention across the Ethereum landscape—not just for its content, but also for the transparency and communication often advocated by key Ethereum community figures from the occasionally opaque foundation.
The #Ethereum The Foundation is excited to unveil our plans for the coming year, and beyond. https://t.co/FxJTMsFWGQ
— Ethereum Foundation (@ethereum) May 21, 2019
In this context, the EF disclosed its intention to spend $30 million over the next 12 months, allocating $19 million for ETH 2.0 development, $8 million for ETH 1.0 projects, and $3 million for developer enhancement and awareness initiatives.
Additionally, the Foundation stressed that it would not favor in-house projects over external collaborations in its funding approach moving forward:
'Currently, whether a project is 'internal' or 'external' should not concern the Foundation. What matters is wisely allocating resources, and that Ethereum's objectives are realized. We're thus taking an 'ecosystem level view' when distributing resources, considering the entire picture rather than only a portion.'
Thus, concerning efforts to enhance Ethereum's public infrastructure, if you build it, the EF may support it financially.
Forward, Onward
So far, 2019 has been positive for Ethereum, with its popularity and prospects trending up.
The blockchain’s daily transaction counts recently experiencing a surge, accompanied by a new trading boom. Last week, Coinbase oversaw over $900 million worth of ETH trades, setting a fresh record for the cryptocurrency exchange giant.
The project also serves as the largest platform for decentralized finance at the moment. This month, the amount of outstanding DeFi loans based on projects built on Ethereum crossed the $100 million milestone for the first time.
Additionally, major companies and institutions like “Big Four” accounting firm EY and French bank Societe Generale are increasingly shifting towards Ethereum to develop their tools and products. Should Ethereum advocates have their way, these organizations will be the first of many more to eventually follow suit.
