Article Details

Ethereum’s Fusaka Upgrade to Boost Scalability with PeerDAS, Says Vitalik Buterin

TL;DR

• Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin highlighted PeerDAS as the centerpiece of the upcoming Fusaka upgrade, designed to advance blockchain scalability.
• The new mechanism allows nodes to verify and reconstruct blocks without holding the full dataset, lowering resource demands and enhancing decentralization.
• While blob usage on Ethereum recently reached a new high, Buterin emphasized a cautious rollout, ensuring security and network stability before gradually expanding capacity for long-term growth.
  

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Ethereum’s long-term scaling roadmap gained momentum this week after Vitalik Buterin explained how PeerDAS, a feature in the forthcoming Fusaka upgrade, will transform the way the network processes data. PeerDAS, short for Peer Data Availability Sampling, enables nodes to verify block data by retrieving small fragments instead of downloading entire blocks. This data is then reconstructed using erasure coding, a technique already trusted in distributed storage systems for reliability and fault tolerance.

Buterin stressed that this approach lowers the reliance on any single actor and makes the system resilient even when facing dishonest participants. Although some full data availability is still required in specific moments, PeerDAS ensures that a single honest party can keep the process secure. Over time, developers plan to distribute even those limited responsibilities, further reducing centralization risks.

Rising Blob Activity Strengthens Scaling Needs

The debate around data availability has intensified as Ethereum recently recorded six blobs per block for the first time. Blobs, introduced with the Dencun upgrade, are fixed data packets that rollups use for efficient storage. Demand is being driven mainly by networks like Base, Scroll, Linea, and World, with Base and World alone consuming a large share of the available space. Analysts estimate that Layer 2 platforms are paying hundreds of thousands of dollars weekly in fees, underlining how valuable blobspace has become for scaling strategies.

Despite rising activity, many blobs remain partially underutilized, showing that usage patterns still lack predictability. Buterin responded by stating that blob counts will grow cautiously, balancing demand with the need to protect the network from potential stress. PeerDAS, by making verification lightweight, provides the technical foundation for this gradual yet reliable expansion.

Long Term Vision For Ethereum Scaling

Buterin outlined that PeerDAS will not only serve Layer 2 rollups but eventually play a crucial role at the Ethereum base layer itself. As gas limits increase, even execution data could be shifted into blobs, unlocking new scaling headroom without compromising decentralization. This vision aligns with Ethereum’s broader mission of handling greater demand while keeping participation open to a wide set of nodes worldwide.