Ethereum's Future: Major Updates Coming in 2026 to Enhance Speed and Efficiency

In 2026, Ethereum plans to implement two significant hard forks—Glamsterdam and Heze-Bogota—to improve the network’s speed, efficiency, and censorship resistance. These upgrades aim to enable Ethereum to handle up to 10,000 transactions per second on Layer 1 and support Layer 2 networks in processing hundreds of thousands per second.

Key Takeaways

Ethereum will experience two major hard forks in 2026, named Glamsterdam and Heze-Bogota, enhancing transaction speeds and efficiency.
Focus areas include parallel execution, higher gas limits, and introduction of zero-knowledge proofs, leading to improved network performance.
The Glamsterdam fork will allow simultaneous transaction processing and include features like Block Access Lists and enshrined proposer-builder separation (ePBS).
The upcoming Heze-Bogota fork will reinforce censorship resistance through Fork-Choice Inclusion Lists.
These upgrades will lay the foundation for faster and more robust Layer 2 networks, making Ethereum more decentralized and scalable.

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Why 2026 Is a Milestone Year for Ethereum

The year 2026 is pivotal for Ethereum, as the focus will be on enhancing parallel execution capabilities, increasing gas limits, and introducing zero-knowledge (ZK) proofs at the validator level. These enhancements aim to reduce slowdowns and improve overall efficiency. By the year's end, it is estimated that around 10% of validators could transition to verifying ZK proofs rather than reprocessing each transaction, marking a significant advancement toward long-term scalability.

The Glamsterdam Fork

Set to launch in mid-2026, the Glamsterdam fork will revolutionize transaction processing by allowing Ethereum to handle multiple transactions simultaneously. Key features of this upgrade include:

Block Access Lists: These lists identify the specific data parts each transaction will utilize, enabling safe parallel execution using multiple CPU cores—this boosts throughput without drastically increasing gas limits.

Enshrined Proposer-Builder Separation (ePBS): This feature integrates a mechanism within Ethereum’s protocol to separate block proposers from block builders. This approach mitigates centralization risks, enhances censorship resistance, and accommodates ZK-based validation. Validators will be able to generate and verify ZK proofs without suffering penalties for additional processing time. Additionally, gas limits are anticipated to ascend gradually, potentially reaching 200 million per block following the activation of ePBS.

Layer-2 Boost Through Ethereum Upgrades

The advancements in 2026 will not only accelerate Layer 1 but also significantly enhance Layer 2 networks. The volume of data blobs per block could increase to 72 or more, providing Layer 2 systems with ample data and enabling them to manage hundreds of thousands of transactions per second. Usability is also on the rise. For instance, ZKsync’s Elastic Network will allow users to maintain funds on Ethereum while leveraging faster Layer 2 solutions. Furthermore, a newly proposed Ethereum Interoperability Layer will facilitate effortless activity transitions between varying Layer 2 networks.

Heze-Bogota Fork: Enhanced Censorship Resistance

Scheduled for late 2026, the Heze-Bogota fork aims to bolster Ethereum's resistance to censorship. A notable feature of this upgrade is the Fork-Choice Inclusion Lists, which empowers groups of validators to guarantee the inclusion of particular transactions in blocks. This mechanism ensures that transactions remain unblocked as long as a portion of the network remains honest, supporting Ethereum’s foundational values of neutrality and unrestricted access.

Looking Ahead: Ethereum's 2026 Vision

Ethereum Vision Image

In summary, the Glamsterdam and Heze-Bogota forks set the stage for a faster, more scalable, and censorship-resistant Ethereum. While achieving 10,000 transactions per second may be a longer-term goal, the developments in 2026 aim to establish strong technical foundations. Layer 2 networks are also expected to see notable speed enhancements, promoting a more decentralized and resilient Ethereum network.

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