In an exciting development for the Ethereum blockchain, researcher Dankrad Feist has introduced Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP) 9698, which aims to increase the gas limit by an astounding 100 times over the next four years. This strategic plan could potentially boost the network’s transactions per second (TPS) from a mere 20 to a whopping 2,000, establishing Ethereum as a competitive player against blockchains like Solana.
The proposal outlines a deterministic gas limit growth schedule that is expected to begin around June 1 with epoch 369017. Over the first two years, the gas limit will gradually increase tenfold, followed by a final increment of ten times. This approach ensures that Ethereum clients must vote on the proposal for its implementation, promoting a collaborative effort within the Ethereum community.
Feist emphasizes that this exponential growth pattern is designed to foster a sustainable and transparent trajectory for gas limits, aligning closely with anticipated advancements in hardware and protocol efficiency. Given Ethereum’s current capacity of around 36 million gas units, this proposal would expand the gas limit to a staggering 3.6 billion, allowing up to 6,000 transactions per block. Such a revamp in gas capacity aims to address current scalability issues, focusing on enhancing the base layer rather than relying solely on layer 2 solutions.
The EIP-9698 emerges after Ethereum validators previously agreed to boost the gas limit from 30 million to 36 million in February, following the last significant adjustment during the London hard fork in August 2021. As debates about the effectiveness of layer 2 strategies intensify, critics argue that they have led to a fragmented ecosystem with diminished interoperability and a compromised user experience.
Moreover, Ethereum developers are also exploring a fourfold increase in gas limits through another proposal, EIP-9678, that is scheduled for testing in the upcoming Fusaka hard fork anticipated in late 2025. While the next major upgrade, Pectra, is slated for launch on the Ethereum mainnet in May, these developments signal Ethereum’s commitment to scaling its capabilities and enhancing overall user satisfaction.
Despite the potential challenges of implementing a rapidly growing gas limit, Feist reassures that the gradual increments will afford node operators and developers ample time to adapt and optimize their systems. With Ethereum aiming to redefine its capacity and efficiency, the blockchain community watches closely to see how these proposals unfold.
