Vitalik Buterin Targets Ethereum’s Core Bottlenecks with Bold Overhaul

Vitalik Buterin is redirecting the Ethereum scaling focus from Layer 2 solutions back to fundamental protocol architecture, identifying the state tree and virtual machine as the primary long-term constraints, accounting for over 80% of proving costs.

His proposal includes replacing the current hexary Merkle Patricia tree with a binary tree structure (EIP-7864), which would significantly shorten Merkle proofs, benefiting lightweight clients and potentially saving over 10,000 gas per transaction for certain dApps by grouping storage slots more efficiently. This change aims to make the base layer more "prover-friendly" for ZK applications.

Longer term, Buterin suggested moving beyond the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) toward a RISC-V-based architecture for greater efficiency and simplicity, though he also proposed a near-term "vectorized math precompile" as a "GPU for the EVM." This focus on deep architectural changes contrasts with views that Ethereum is becoming too complex through added layers, reflecting a fundamental debate over whether to layer solutions or rework the foundation.

(Source：BeInCrypto)