Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin discussed plans for Ethereum 2.0 at the Stanford Blockchain Conference. Buterin explained that the central development for ETH 2.0 throughout the year was the launch of Phase 0.
Vitalik Buterin presents the Ethereum 2.0 roadmap
He said:
“Phase 0 is the first phase of the launch of Ethereum 2.0. This will release proof-of-stake network, which will be released this year.”
Although the official launch date of Phase 0 has not been determined, Buterin explained that Stage 0 is close to having a multi-client testnet and audits of the existing code.
He noted:
“A lot of optimizations are currently underway with Phase 0, and we will continue to refine over the next few months.”
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin
After the launch of Phase 0, Buterin announced that ETH 2.0 would start as an independent PoS network. He explained that the purpose behind this is to allow the PoS system to begin slowly to prove its ability over time. He said that Ethereum 2.0 will start without applications and that there will be a small number of validators.
Buterin noted:
“Phase 1 of ETH 2.0 will be released next, which will allow shending. Moreover, ETH 2.0 will contain a central blockchain known as the Beacon Chain. This will coordinate all 64 sidechains called shards.”
According to a blog post from ETH 2.0 testnet client Prysmatic Labs, every shard will function as a full PoS system, containing an independent part of transaction history and status. Instead of processing all network transactions, each node will only handle transactions for a given shard.
If implemented correctly, sharding will provide solutions to the scalability problem of Ethereum without compromising the security and decentralization of the network. Buterin noted that once the ETH 2.0 network becomes completely powerful, Ethereum 1.0 will merge into the 2.0 system, completing the transition.
The development of the staking system
As a PoS network, property owners are rewarded for their commitment to holding coins to protect and validate the network. ETH 2.0 will require 32 Ether (ETH) to participate as validators.
Besides, the growing wealth disparity in the staking model could potentially reward the rich for having more money. However, Daniel Ryan from the Ethereum Foundation argues that PoS systems are fairer than Proof-of-Work systems.
He said:
“In both cases, having an asset allows you to make a profit on that asset. The difference between these two things is that in PoS, capital mapping is much more direct and fair.”
Do new scaling solutions create less urgency for ETH 2.0?
Buterin also noted that while ETH 2.0 is being tested and developed, new scaling solutions are being created that are compatible with Ethereum and are capable of addressing some of its key challenges. For example, “Optimistic Rollups” are second-class structures that allow for expanded smart contracts.
Co-founder and chief scientist at Offchain Labs, Edward Felten, said the Arbitrum Rollup product is currently live on testnet. Arbitrum is the first Rollup system for general smart contracts.
Felten explained:
“Offchain Labs is trying to scale up and improve the performance and lower the cost of smart contracts on Ethereum in a way that is compatible with existing Ethereum Blockchains.”
According to Felten, old applications written as Solidity smart contracts can be included in the Arbitrum toolchain. This creates a custom sidechain for developer applications; however, the security for these applications is anchored on the Ethereum leading network.
Felten also made it clear that Offchain Labs does not compete with Ethereum, but instead provides a compatible second layer solution to solve performance and scalability issues.
Asked if a solution like ETH 2.0 with Arbitrum is needed, Felten said:
“We hope that Ethereum 2.0 brings the expected benefits to our Layer 2 solutions, but we don’t wait for that to happen.”
This article is referenced based on the original article from Cointelegraph.
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