Ethlabs Drops Quick Slots Push to Chase a Post-Quantum Ethereum by 2027
The lab is withdrawing its Quick Slots proposal from Hegotá to focus on making Ethereum post-quantum, and plausibly post-AI, in 2027.
Ethlabs wants Ethereum quantum-proof a year or two sooner than the current plans.
On Nov. 11th, the non-profit R&D lab, whose team includes several former Ethereum Foundation researchers, published a proposal called "pqai27." It argues Ethereum can become post-quantum, and plausibly "post-AI," in 2027. To focus on that goal, the lab is withdrawing its own push for faster blocks in the next fork.
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What's the Scoop?
Why the rush: Ethlabs argues AI is speeding up three threats at once: earlier quantum computing timelines, math breakthroughs that could crack today's cryptography, and bug hunting at scale. By "post-AI," it means cryptography that relies on as few assumptions as possible, plus clients hardened against AI bug hunters.
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The plan: The Hegotá fork would make Ethereum "pqai-ready," with post-quantum consensus and a post-quantum option for every account. If current cryptography broke, the network could then keep running at reduced capacity. Full-capacity post-quantum transactions and blobs are a stretch goal for 2027.
What gets cut: Ethlabs is pulling Quick Slots, its own flagship proposal to cut slot times from 12 to 10 seconds, and will aim for faster slots in 2028 instead. It also says FOCIL, Hegotá's consensus-layer headliner, should only be scheduled if 2027 stays achievable. Frame transactions stay in.
Still a proposal: Ethlabs' Barnabé Monnot stressed that the plan is the lab's view, not a ratified roadmap. The Quick Slots withdrawal, though, is "an unconditional commitment." Core devs discussed post-quantum urgency on Thursday's consensus call but didn't change Hegotá's scope.
The doubters: EF researcher Toni Wahrstätter called a much faster transition "somewhere between ambitious and impossible." StarkWare CEO Eli Ben-Sasson called the goal worthy but doubted it lands by the end of 2027.
Why it matters: EF researchers had talked about finishing the post-quantum transition by late 2028, and the EF's own pages still say 2029, so pqai27 is a real acceleration. Giving up two seconds of slot time for an earlier quantum defense is an easy sell. Delaying FOCIL, a censorship-resistance upgrade, will be a much tougher one. It's also the first big test of whether a lab outside the EF can reset Ethereum's priorities in public.
William M. Peaster
William M. Peaster, Senior Writer, has been with Bankless since January 2021. Immersed in Ethereum since 2017, he covers the onchain frontier with a particular interest in art, games, and other culture apps. He has a background in creative writing and writes fiction in his free time.
