The scaling of Ethereum’s gas limit is set to revolutionize the blockchain’s performance, thanks to a bold proposal called EIP-9698.
This plan aims for a 100-fold increase over four years, kicking off in June 2025 from the current 36 million gas limit to a whopping 3.6 billion.
Imagine Ethereum as a busy highway; EIP-9698 is like widening it from two lanes to 200, but without the traffic jams.
In technical terms, it rolls out in two stages, each boosting the limit tenfold over about two years, or 164,250 epochs, for a predictable schedule that helps node operators plan ahead.
Of course, it’s not all smooth sailing.
Beefing up the gas limit might strain underpowered nodes, leading to longer block times and more orphaned blocks—think of it as a party getting too big for the house, where things get chaotic.
But developers have designed gradual increases to give everyone time to upgrade hardware and software.
This could ramp up network demands, potentially sidelining smaller operators and risking centralization, though it’s a calculated move to balance growth.
On the upside, EIP-9698 could skyrocket Ethereum’s transactions per second to over 2,000, outpacing rivals like Solana in a dramatic showdown.
Picture blocks handling up to 6,000 transactions—enough to ease congestion and slash fees, making complex apps thrive.
It’s like upgrading from a flip phone to a smartphone; suddenly, everything runs faster and smoother.
Implementation-wise, the plan starts with the Pectra hard fork in May 2025, followed by Fusaka later that year for initial tests.
This approach differs from Layer 2 solutions that build additional processing infrastructure on top of the main blockchain to improve scalability.
EIP-9678 even teases a fourfold bump sooner.
Compared to Layer-2 solutions, this Layer-1 focus reunites the ecosystem, avoiding the fragmentation mess—because who needs more puzzle pieces when you can just build a bigger board?
This initiative responds to Ethereum fees at five-year lows, aiming to enhance competitiveness against alternatives like Solana.
All in all, it’s a confident step toward a more robust Ethereum, blending innovation with a dash of real-world caution.
