Ethereum developers, riding the wave of last month’s successful Fusaka upgrade that reduced node costs, are already advancing their plans for the blockchain’s next significant change.
Introducing “Glamsterdam.”
This name combines two simultaneous upgrades happening on Ethereum’s dual core layers. The execution layer, where transaction regulations and smart contracts reside, will receive the Amsterdam upgrade, while the consensus layer, responsible for coordinating validators and finalizing blocks, will see an upgrade termed Gloas.
Central to Glamsterdam is enshrined Proposer-Builder Separation (ePBS), formally recognized as EIP-7732. This proposal aims to integrate into Ethereum’s core protocol a mechanism that distinguishes nodes that build blocks from those that propose them, thereby preventing any single entity from dictating which transactions are included or their order.
Currently, this separation mostly depends on off-chain services called relays, which carry trust assumptions and centralization risks. With ePBS, block builders would create blocks and securely seal their contents, while proposers would simply select the highest-paying block without visibility or ability to alter its contents. The transactions would only become visible once the block is finalized, minimizing chances for manipulation and abuse linked to MEV, or maximal extractable value — the additional profit validators or builders can exploit by rearranging, inserting, or censoring transactions.
Another proposal earmarked for Glamsterdam is Block-level Access Lists (EIP-7928), an internal modification allowing a block to indicate beforehand which accounts and smart-contract data it will utilize. Instead of uncovering this information on a transaction-by-transaction basis, Ethereum software — referred to as clients — can load and reuse data more efficiently, enhancing block execution speed, reliability, and optimization. This adjustment could help stabilize gas costs and establish crucial foundations for future scaling enhancements.
Both ePBS and Block-level Access Lists exemplify Ethereum Improvement Proposals, or EIPs, which are formal recommendations outlining alterations to the protocol and serve as the primary coordination mechanism for Ethereum’s developmental efforts.
The complete details of Glamsterdam are yet to be finalized, with further EIPs likely to be identified over the next few weeks. Regarding timeline, developers have not pinned down a specific date but have suggested that the upgrade is anticipated to occur sometime in 2026.
Read more: Ethereum Activates Fusaka Upgrade, Aiming to Cut Node Costs, Speed Layer-2 Settlements
