Ethereum Schedules Glamsterdam Upgrade on Sepolia Testnet

The Ethereum network is set to undergo its next major upgrade, Glamsterdam, on the Sepolia testnet on October 6. The update will bring several key changes, including proposer-builder separation, block-level access lists, and new gas pricing.

Glamsterdam's proposer-builder separation will move the handoff between specialized block builders and validators into Ethereum's protocol, reducing reliance on outside middleware. Block-level access lists will record the accounts and storage locations used during each block, while the new gas pricing mechanism will better reflect the cost of creating and accessing data on Ethereum.

The upgrade is expected to require changes for contracts that rely on fixed gas stipends or hardcoded gas limits. The Ethereum Foundation has not set a date for Glamsterdam's rollout on the validator-focused testnet Hoodi or on mainnet, but developers are targeting 2027 for the subsequent Hegotá upgrade.

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin stated that Hegotá could be the network's last 'normal' fork before development shifts toward recursive STARKs, automated formal verification, optimized consensus, and quantum-safe cryptography.