According to ChainCatcher, citing The Block, Consensys CEO Joseph Lubin said Ethereum is expected to evolve into a protocol fully based on zero-knowledge proofs, or ZK Proofs, within the next three to five years. In Lubin’s view, this transition would not only optimize the main chain, but also strengthen composability between Ethereum and Layer 2 networks. His remarks place ZK Proofs at the center of Ethereum’s next technical phase, connecting base-layer improvements with the broader rollup ecosystem.
Rollup-centric roadmap and Lean Ethereum
Lubin said he supports the “Rollup-centric roadmap.” He argued that Ethereum’s base layer can be significantly upgraded through a combination of a stronger Layer 1, the introduction of the “Lean Ethereum” initiative, and wider adoption of ZK Proofs. Lean Ethereum is designed to maintain a highly decentralized mainnet while enabling more than 10,000 transactions per second. It is also intended to support privacy and quantum-resistant solutions, tying scalability, decentralization, privacy and long-term security into the same development direction.
On the Layer 2 side, Lubin noted that ZK technology has already achieved real-time proving on some L2 networks. The plan, according to his comments, is to extend this capability to Layer 1 and eventually move toward a fully ZK-based base protocol supported by multiple provers. He cited Consensys-developed Linea and projects such as Gnosis as examples of networks using zero-knowledge proofs to enable synchronized cross-network transactions. This approach is expected to remove the need for bridging and unify fragmented liquidity across networks.
Layer 2 experimentation and the Ethereum Foundation
Lubin emphasized that the initial “divergence phase” of the rollup roadmap was intended to create experimental space for Layer 2 technologies. Although this phase can fragment liquidity in the short term, he said it lays the groundwork for Ethereum’s future unlimited scaling and ongoing technical iteration. He also said some Layer 2 technologies will become systemically important components, making this exploration process necessary for Ethereum’s development path.
Lubin also responded to questions about recent personnel changes at the Ethereum Foundation, or EF, and rumors of a “second foundation.” He said there will be no second foundation. The EF will continue to focus on core protocol development, usability and scaling, as well as institutional cooperation. At the same time, it will support at least three independent teams spinning out from the EF, with those teams focusing respectively on protocol work, user experience and institutional expansion.