Vitalik Buterin envisions Ethereum as a cryptographic world computer

The Hegotá upgrade, slated for 2027, marks a definitive boundary in the network's evolution. Buterin characterizes it as the final "conventional" fork, where the underlying technology remains recognizable to those familiar with Ethereum’s 2015 roots. Beyond this point, the roadmap pivots toward a model where the blockchain serves primarily as a layer for ordering data and state changes, while heavy computation is handled in parallel by cryptographic systems.

Central to this shift is the move away from the "download and re-execute" model. Instead, the network is adopting PeerDAS for data availability and SNARK verification to ensure trustless consensus without requiring every node to process the entire history. Proposals like EIP-7805 (FOCIL) and EIP-8141 (Frame Transactions) are already lined up for Hegotá to enhance censorship resistance and offer users more flexibility in how they authorize transactions. Looking further ahead, the Ethereum Foundation has set an aggressive target of December 2029 to implement full quantum-resistant security across its execution and consensus layers, preparing the infrastructure for a future where traditional cryptographic methods may no longer suffice.