ConsenSys founder and CEO Joe Lubin said in an interview that Ethereum could become a fully zero-knowledge (ZK) based protocol within three to five years. Despite criticism over the rollup-centric roadmap causing liquidity fragmentation, Lubin believes upcoming innovations in real-time ZK proving and composability will revitalize Ethereum and unlock "unlimited capacity."
Rollup Endgame: Mainnet Toward "Lean Ethereum"
Lubin called himself a "big proponent" of the rollup-centric roadmap, arguing the current pain is part of evolution. He referenced Ethereum Foundation researcher Justin Drake's "Lean Ethereum" vision, which uses advanced ZK cryptography to simplify the main chain, achieving over 10,000 TPS while maintaining decentralization. Lubin said cryptographic advances will gradually bring ZK proofs to L1, ultimately transforming it into a protocol fully supported by multiple formally verified provers. This would bridge the composability gap between L1 and L2.
From Divergence to Convergence: Eliminating Cross-Chain Bridges
Regarding Vitalik Buterin's shift toward making L1 cheaper and faster, Lubin stressed L2 remains an essential innovation frontier. He noted ZK proofs first took root on L2, proving the team right. L2 now supports "real-time ZK proving," and that experience will soon feed back to L1. Lubin described the evolution from a "divergence phase" to a "convergence phase," where fragmentation is being repaired through chains like Linea and Gnosis using ZK for cross-network synchronous transactions. The ultimate goal is a "single atomic execution context" allowing users and assets to move across the entire Ethereum ecosystem without cross-chain bridges, unifying fragmented liquidity. This technology has already extended to ConsenSys' enterprise arm Besu, helping traditional giants like Citi, DTC, and BNY Mellon integrate their institutional chains into the public chain's infinite capacity ecosystem.
No Second Foundation: EF to Split Into Three Teams
Lubin also dismissed rumors of a "second Ethereum Foundation." He confirmed that EF is undergoing a major restructuring, focusing on core protocol related parts (CROPs). At least three separate teams will emerge from EF, focusing on core protocol development, usability and scalability, and institutional outreach. This organizational decentralization, paired with ZK maturity, will push the traditional economy onto the chain within 3-5 years, securing Ethereum's dominance as the Web3 settlement layer.