Ethereum Foundation Unveils ‘Strawmap’ Plan With Seven Forks Through 2029

• The Ethereum Foundation introduced a “Strawmap” outlining seven possible forks through 2029.
• The plan focuses on faster transactions, scalability, privacy, and quantum-resistant security.
• The roadmap is flexible, with quarterly updates and open community feedback.

The Ethereum Foundation (EF) has introduced a new long-term plan called the “Strawmap.” It outlines up to seven possible network upgrades (forks) between now and 2029.

The plan was shared by Justin Drake, a researcher on the EF Protocol team. He described it as a discussion tool, not a fixed prediction. Its goal is to help developers and the wider community align on Ethereum’s long-term direction for its base layer (Layer 1).

Bigger-Picture Roadmap

Unlike short-term upgrade plans, the Strawmap looks several years ahead. It assumes roughly one network fork every six months, totaling seven forks by 2029. However, the timeline is flexible and could change.

The idea came from an Ethereum Foundation workshop in January 2026. Participants discussed how to align long-term goals with near-term upgrades and technical limits.

Five “North Stars” for Ethereum

At the heart of the strawmap are five ambitious goals, described as “north stars” for Ethereum’s base layer:

• Fast L1 – Improving user experience through shorter slots and near-instant finality.
• Gigagas L1 – Targeting 1 gigagas per second (around 10,000 transactions per second) via zkEVMs and real-time proving.
• Teragas L2 – Scaling to 1 gigabyte per second (around 10 million TPS) using data availability sampling.
• Post-Quantum L1 – Strengthening durability with hash-based cryptographic schemes resistant to quantum attacks.
• Private L1 – Enabling first-class privacy through shielded ETH transfers.

These goals frame Ethereum’s long-term push toward scalability, security, and privacy while preserving decentralization.

How the Timeline Works

The Strawmap is organized in a visual timeline. It separates upgrades into three areas:

• Consensus Layer
• Data Layer
• Execution Layer

Some upcoming forks already have names, such as Glamsterdam and Hegotá, while others are placeholders. Each fork usually includes one major upgrade for consensus and one for execution to keep development manageable.

Not an Official Final Plan

The Ethereum Foundation stresses that this is not a final roadmap. Ethereum is decentralized, so no single plan represents everyone’s view. The Strawmap is meant to guide discussion and may change as research, governance decisions, and new technologies evolve.

It will be updated at least every quarter, and community feedback is encouraged. Overall, the Strawmap gives the Ethereum ecosystem a clearer long-term framework to debate how the network should grow, scale, and innovate through 2029 and beyond.

Related: Ethereum Foundation Begins Staking 70,000 ETH to Fund Core Operations and Secure Network