Ethlabs Drops Hegotá Slot Proposal to Prioritize Quantum Readiness

Ethlabs has announced the withdrawal of its proposal to accelerate Ethereum block production during the upcoming Hegotá network upgrade. Instead, the research group is urging core developers to concentrate their efforts on preparing the blockchain for potential quantum computing threats by the year 2027.

On Wednesday, the organization released details regarding a newly proposed roadmap called "pqai27." This strategy is designed specifically to safeguard Ethereum from vulnerabilities associated with quantum computing and advancing artificial intelligence capabilities. According to the group, any unrelated network upgrades should be thoroughly reconsidered in light of these emerging security challenges.

Previously, Ethlabs provided support for Ethereum Improvement Proposal 8198, commonly referred to as Quick Slots. That proposal was intended to reduce Ethereum slot times from 12 seconds down to 10 seconds. While the organization is redirecting its immediate resources toward the pqai27 initiative, it indicated that it still intends to pursue faster slot times further down the road in 2028.

Regarding the Hegotá upgrade itself, Ethlabs stated that the planned censorship-resistance feature known as FOCIL should only move forward if it does not interfere with achieving quantum readiness. Additionally, the group highlighted Frame Transactions, which are designed to support more flexible account authentication, as a fundamental element of the proposed security transition. Meanwhile, the organization noted that Glamsterdam, which is scheduled as the upgrade preceding Hegotá, should proceed exactly as originally planned.

Ethlabs shifts its focus to 2027 quantum readiness, dropping the Hegotá block speed proposal.

The Path Forward for Ethereum Developers

It is worth noting that Ethereum core developers have not yet given official approval to the proposal put forward by Ethlabs. The published roadmap from the Ethereum Foundation currently maintains a target date of December 2029 for achieving full quantum resistance across the network. Furthermore, during a recent Devcon event, researcher Justin Drake expressed his personal hope that the security transition could be completed earlier, by the year 2028.

Why it matters

This decision marks a significant shift in how research groups prioritize foundational security over incremental performance enhancements like faster block production. By redirecting resources toward quantum and AI readiness, developers must weigh the urgency of future cryptographic threats against current network upgrades, shaping the long-term architectural timeline of the entire Ethereum ecosystem.