The Ethereum Foundation has released a roadmap to make the entire Ethereum mainnet quantum-resistant by December 2029. On Sept. 8, blockchain media outlet CoinPost reported that the goal is to convert all three layers of Ethereum L1 — the execution, consensus and data layers — to a quantum-resistant structure.

The schedule is aligned with 2029 transition targets set by Google, Cloudflare and Microsoft. The foundation set the timeline on the premise that “Q-day,” a quantum-computing era that threatens existing cryptographic systems, could arrive as early as 2030. It plans not to change the deadline at least until January 2027, and then reassess the pace of quantum technology development with advice from outside experts.

Ethereum aims to implement its next major upgrade, “Glamssterdam,” in December. It then plans to deliver full quantum resistance through 5 upgrades. If Glamssterdam is applied in December, the plan would require an average development pace of 7.2 months per upgrade.

The plan also reflects cases where development slows. Even if the upgrade cycle extends to an average of 12 months, it plans to introduce minimally viable post-quantum cryptography so Ethereum can be provisionally transitioned to a quantum-resistant infrastructure before all network components are replaced.

“Hegota,” the upgrade following Glamssterdam, is expected to be the first test of the roadmap. Hegota itself is not centered on post-quantum readiness, but it was presented as the first test to gauge whether the parallel development system works in practice and whether subsequent post-quantum upgrades can be executed on schedule.

In Hegota, FOCIL and “frame transactions” (EIP-8141) were named as priority tasks. FOCIL is a technology that ensures all valid transactions are included on-chain within a certain period without relying on specific builders. Frame transactions support quantum resistance on the security side, key rotation and a transition away from secp256k1.

The Ethereum Foundation said cooperation across the broader ecosystem is needed to implement the roadmap. It said research, specification work and prototype development must proceed in parallel. Separately, it plans to pursue long-term tasks including faster transaction finality, privacy, responses to growth in state data, and research into zkEVM.