As Ethereum deploys Pectra, it faces stiff competition and community criticism. Ethereum Foundation Research co-leads Alex Stokes and Barnabe Monnot map out the chain’s direction.

Ethereum is well on its way to some major upgrades, with Pectra and Fusaka introducing a number of performance improvements in the near future. But will it be enough to stay ahead of the competition?

Ethereum Foundation Research co-leads Alex Stokes and Barnabe Monnot join the show to discuss:

• How Pectra and Fusaka will improve Ethereum’s performance
• What it means that its launch on two testnets failed
• Ethereum’s “north star” — decentralization
• Whether Ethereum can retain its top spot in the smart contract space
• As Ethereum adopts native rollups and data availability, does it create competition with existing L2s and DA providers?
• The new direction for the Ethereum Foundation leaders and whether Etherealize can bring Wall Street

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Guest:

• Alex Stokes, Co-Lead, Ethereum Foundation Research

• Barnabe Monnot, Co-Lead, Ethereum Foundation Research
• Previous appearances on Unchained:
• 5 Things to Know About Coinbase’s 2021

Links

• Previous coverage on Unchained of:
• Etherealize advocates for Ethereum
• Why Ethereum’s New Marketing Arm Is Convinced Wall Street Will Adopt ETH
• Ethereum Foundation contemplates comeback
• Ethereum Is Lagging. Here’s How It Could Finally Shake Off Rival Solana
• 2025 Will Be a Year of Crypto Competition. Can Ethereum Make a Comeback?

• What Ethena means for Ethereum
• Ethena’s L1 Shows Fat Apps Are on the Rise. Can They Beat Fat Protocols?
• The Chopping Block w/ Guy Young: Lessons from USD0, Ethena’s Bold Vision, and DeFi’s Future

• The Pectra Upgrade
• Ethereum.org: Pectra Testnet Announcement | Ethereum Foundation Blog
• tim.mirror.xyz: AllCoreDevs Update 17
• Ethereum.org: EIP-7691: Blob throughput increase
• Ethereum.org: Holesky and Hoodi Testnet Updates | Ethereum Foundation Blog
• Coindesk: Hello, Hoodi: Ethereum Welcomes a New Testnet 
• Fusaka on the horizon
• Github: EIP-7805 proposed for Fusaka
• Native rollups versus non-native rollups
• Youtube: The Future of Ethereum Scaling: Native Rollups Explained
• Reddit: Native rollup debates
• L1 and L2 debates
• Vitalik.eth.limo: Reasons to have higher L1 gas limits even in an L2-heavy Ethereum
• Vitalik.eth.limo: Scaling Ethereum L1 and L2s in 2025 and beyond
• Ethereum Foundation Leadership changes
• X: Barnabe Monnot and Alex Stokes announcement
• X: New EF titles
• X: Fixing the Core Dev process
• Ethena’s Converge news 
• John Wang’s tweet
• Camila Russo’s comment

Timestamps:

👋 0:00 Intro

🪝 2:05 How Barnabe and Alex got hooked on Ethereum development

⚙️ 6:37 How Pectra will change Ethereum

🪴 10:35 How does increasing blobs boost Ethereum?

🪲 13:22 Pectra fork bugs on Holeski testnet

🔮 18:38 What’s in the upcoming Fusaka upgrade?

🤯 22:42 How decisions get made in Ethereum and which groups are involved

📈 30:34 Can Ethereum keep up with the competition?

🏁 39:16 Can Ethereum compete by scaling the L1?

🤓 44:02 What are native roll-ups and how do they help Ethereum compete?

🤺 49:26 Native rollups and expanded data availability on Ethereum vs. non-native options

⚰️ 52:22 Is Ethena building its own blockchain the “nail in the coffin” for Ethereum?

👬 1:00:05 Shaking up the EF’s leadership

🤔 1:06:14 Will Etherealize fix Ethereum’s problems?

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