Ethereum Network co-founder Vitalik Buterin wrote another article, “The Possible Future of the Ethereum Protocol, Part 2: Surge,” in which he scales Ethereum’s layer (L1) to layer 2 (L2). proposed to maximize the scalability of In the same article, he also touched on achieving maximum L2 interoperability.
This article explains that as Ethereum’s L2 scaling solutions become more scalable and successful, certain risks arise if Ethereum’s L1’s transaction processing capacity remains limited. One of the big concerns is the long-term security of the Ethereum network, as a weak L1 could reduce the economic viability of Ether (ETH) and erode its value. L2 takes advantage of being tightly integrated with a strong financial ecosystem on L1, and as L1 weakens, there is less incentive to operate in L2 rather than in an independent L1.
Additionally, Vitalik argued that L2’s security guarantees are not yet equivalent to L1’s and could pose risks in the event of L2 failure. In such cases, the Ethereum co-founders realized that users still need to rely on L1 for asset recovery, highlighting the need for L1 to be able to manage complex operations during L2 termination.
To address these challenges, “L1 scaling is essential,” Vitalik said. Vitalik added that one approach is to gradually increase gas limits, despite the risks of centralization. According to Vitalik, a more balanced strategy includes improving the Ethereum client software and introducing advanced technologies such as multidimensional gas pricing and reducing gas costs for certain operations.
Vitalik further added that proposals like EVM-MAX and SIMD are aimed at improving computational efficiency, and native rollups will enable parallel execution of transactions, increasing Ethereum’s overall scalability. As the ecosystem evolves, it is important to balance these innovations with Ethereum’s core values of decentralization and security.
“Obviously, it would be unreasonable for everything to proceed in L1,” Vitalik concluded. He further explained: “But if we increase the gas limit by a factor of 10, we do a lot of damage to the decentralization of Ethereum L1, and we end up in a world where instead of 99% of the activity being on L2, 90% of the activity is on L2. The result looks otherwise pretty much the same, except that much of what made Ethereum L1 special is irreversibly lost.”
Also read: Vitalik Buterin proposes improvements to Proof of Stake, aims for 1 ETH Validator staking
