Ethereum 2023: what are the expected updates for this year?
Ethereum is among the few cryptocurrencies that frequently update their systems and methods. Past projects such as the Beacon Chain and the Merge have not only revolutionized the blockchain industry but have also proved that crypto can be improved to achieve a close-to-perfection form and eliminate all common issues.
The cryptocurrency has also suffered some changes since last year. The Ethereum price chart shows a particular constant in the cryptocurrency, which made it more stabilized. The prices are going in a good direction as the ultimate development of the entire blockchain attracts more investors. And as we know how blended the community is, we’re expecting that more upgrades are coming this year to improve the network even more.
Here’s what you should expect from Ethereum in 2023.
Sharding
Sharding is one of the most important features of a blockchain because it helps ensure more scalability, given the current challenge of Ethereum’s scalability methods. The process of sharding is characterized by splitting databases to spread the load of data. This process is essential to reduce network congestion and increase the number of transactions processed per second. At the same time, sharding will help lower transaction fees.
The sharding project is expected to be shipped this year, but it might take some time to be completely installed. However, it became a priority to be delivered as soon as possible after Ethereum moved to proof-of-stake last year.
The main features of sharding include the following:
- Anyone can do node running. Sharding will allow validators to use provided data techniques to confirm data availability. The results are reduced costs of data storing and fewer hardware requirements for mining;
- Network participation increases. After the sharding update, people will be able to run Ethereum on a regular laptop or even mobile phone, which will increase security as the network gets more decentralized;
Shanghai
The Shanghai update is scheduled for the second half of 2023, and it’s the second significant Ethereum change since the Merge. The project aims to introduce more critical, updated and elemental modifications to the blockchain and its EMV functionalities. The upgrade is expected to:
- Reduce gas fees for layer-2 solutions on Ethereum, such as Polygon. As these systems are improved, transactions on the blockchain will be faster and cheaper;
- Allow validators to withdraw or unstake tokens. Currently, potential validators need to stake a certain amount of ETH in a smart deposit contract, but this will change after Shanghai;
- Update smart contracts and their facilities to make Ethereum as developed as possible;
Will the Shanghai update affect the ETH price?
Normally, these updates affect the cryptocurrency’s price in some way or another. Although it’s not 100% sure, the implementation of Shanghai may contribute to price changes. For example, given that a considerable part of all eligible ETH tokens has been staked, the liquidity is expected to flood back into the market and affect the overall price.
At the same time, ETH could become more attractive to investors as the market’s liquidity improves. In this case, more investors will have the chance to stake ETH with Ethereum even if they didn’t stake liquid protocols.
EOF
The EVM Object Format (EOF) is yet another expected 2023 update that will change Ethereum’s code execution environment so that the cryptocurrency platform will be more efficient and the process of creating smart contracts will be improved. EOF will be set to focus more on the EVM Ethereum ecosystem.
EVM (Ethereum’s Virtual Machine) was designed to operate continuously to determine the state of every block on Ethereum’s blockchain. The special state machine governs whether nodes can do the distributed ledger and defines specific rules to regain the changing form of the blocks. This is also what facilitates Ethereum’s smart contract functionality.
The benefits of the EVM include the following:
- Developers can execute the codes with no further negative impact on the network;
- Developers can run complex smart contracts on different computing ecosystems with distributed consensus;
- The EVM is the preferred platform for Web3 development as it’s compatible with multiple layer-2 blockchains;
However, the EVM also has some drawbacks that will be addressed, such as the high transaction fees and gas costs related to running smart contracts. At the same time, given that Ethereum uses Solidity as the programming language, developers need to have solid system knowledge and possess enough technical expertise to handle smart contracts.
What does the future hold for Ethereum
Besides the updates expected in 2023, Ethereum is most likely to become one of the most potent multi-tool blockchains and dominate the market. The blockchain key features of decentralized finance and decentralized autonomous organization boost Ethereum’s popularity as they’re introduced in various industries, such as retail, healthcare and education.
If Ethereum becomes more accessible to regular customers, it will revolutionize businesses. That’s because they’ll be able to scale their processes better, store more data securely and efficiently as well as work inside one of the best-decentralized networks. At the same time, cryptocurrency is paving the road to becoming a worldwide facility because it can be used as an investment, a payment method, settling smart contract agreements and paying associated transaction and gas fees.
Some experts say that Ethereum is shaping the blockchain industry. Although Bitcoin is the first cryptocurrency ever created and is used more often than ether, Ethereum’s blockchain provides more tools and knowledge that allow investors and developers a decentralized space for their transactions and applications to be fairly exchanged. Overall, Ethereum is an excellent option for anyone who wants to invest or create apps and applications on a decentralized network.
Bottom line
Ethereum is the second-largest and most famous cryptocurrency ever. It was based on Bitcoin’s white paper and had similar features. However, the creator of Ethereum, Vitalik Buterin, had a different vision of what people could do with Ethereum. Therefore, the applications and support provided on Ethereum made the blockchain highly used and praised, which is why now so many updates are to change the platform and make it faster, cheaper and more scalable than ever.