Ethereum Announces Next Upgrade Strawmap: Journey to 'Internet of Value' by 2029

After nearly two decades of development, the Ethereum Foundation has introduced Strawmap — an ambitious roadmap for Ethereum’s next upgrade. Although still a draft, this document clearly outlines the strategic direction of the world’s second-largest blockchain by market cap, projected to reach over $200 billion by 2029.

“Strawmap largely operates independently of Ethereum governance. It’s a tool to inform research and development before official governance decisions are made,” Justin Drake, a prominent researcher at the Ethereum Foundation, shared with CoinDesk.

Five transformative goals for Ethereum

At the core of Ethereum’s next upgrade are five pillars: achieving near-instant transactions, significantly higher throughput, built-in privacy, quantum-resistant security, and tighter integration with layer two solutions. These goals focus not only on speed — they aim to make Ethereum a faster, more scalable, private, and sustainable platform for the next decade.

Currently, Ethereum transactions are confirmed quickly, but the point at which they are considered irreversible — called finality — takes about 16 minutes. For most users, this difference is invisible. However, for exchanges, bridges, and financial applications, it’s a matter of life and death.

Finality in seconds: Accelerating Ethereum transactions

Vitalik Buterin, co-founder of Ethereum, has publicly discussed how the next upgrade could address this issue. “Today, finality takes 16 minutes,” he wrote, “but we aim to separate slot and finality, moving to a system where finality can be achieved in 6-16 seconds.”

The shift from minutes to seconds is profound: it completely changes how large-value assets can move comfortably across the network. Faster transactions mean better user experiences, lower payment costs, and higher practical usability.

“Eventually, we will have finality in a few seconds,” Drake said, “which will improve the connection between layer 2 solutions and enhance overall user experience.”

Specialized layer 2: Parallel scaling strategy

Last month, Buterin argued that some assumptions behind the initial layer 2 roadmap “are no longer valid.” Previously, layer 2 networks were seen as the primary tool to scale Ethereum — handling transactions off-chain and then recording results back on the main chain to reduce congestion and fees.

However, as layer 1 continues to improve and some rollups are slower than expected in decentralization, the old strategy — where Ethereum outsourced most scaling to layer 2 — has become less suitable.

Instead, Strawmap reflects a parallel scaling strategy: the base layer of Ethereum will continue to be enhanced, while layer 2 networks develop into more specialized roles — whether for privacy, specific applications, or advanced security models. This isn’t about layer 2 disappearing; rather, both will evolve side by side, each with its own purpose.

Privacy and quantum security: Two pillars of the next upgrade

Privacy marks a notable shift in Ethereum’s upgrade. In the past, Ethereum’s transparency was seen as a strength — all transactions are public. But this openness also limits certain use cases. The next Ethereum upgrade plans to introduce “shielded” transactions at the base layer, allowing ETH to move without fully exposing details publicly.

For individuals, this is a matter of financial security. For businesses, it determines whether certain activities should be on-chain or not.

And there’s a longer-term game: post-quantum cryptography. While quantum computing is still in development, if Ethereum is to secure trillions of dollars in value for decades, current security assumptions won’t hold forever. The Ethereum Foundation recently established a post-quantum team, and Strawmap’s roadmap indicates ongoing efforts to strengthen these defenses in the next Ethereum upgrade.

Practical implications and future directions

For developers and enterprises, this roadmap offers valuable clarity on the path forward. Ethereum has long been criticized for slow progress and delayed upgrades. By publishing a long-term draft, researchers signal that the next phase is about more than patching current limitations.

However, Ethereum’s history is full of overly ambitious timelines that often extend beyond expectations. Governance within a decentralized system ensures debates and modifications will continue. Strawmap itself acknowledges that it will evolve over time.

“For me, ultimately, this is about making Ethereum the internet of value, and ether the money for that internet,” Drake concluded. Ethereum’s next upgrade isn’t just about technical improvements — it’s a statement of the blockchain’s long-term ambitions.