Ethereum Eyes RISC-V Upgrade as ZK Tech Evolves Amid Lawsuit

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has proposed a significant shift in the network’s infrastructure: replacing the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) with the open-source RISC-V framework. This move could enhance the Ethereum execution layer’s efficiency and simplicity, potentially removing long-standing scaling barriers. The EVM has been central to Ethereum’s interoperability with other networks, but Buterin argues that RISC-V could deliver better performance and future-proof Ethereum’s architecture.

Meanwhile, Matter Labs, the developer behind zkSync, is facing a lawsuit from BANKEX, a defunct fintech firm, alleging intellectual property theft. The case claims former BANKEX employees used proprietary tech to launch Matter Labs, which later raised over $450 million. The dispute also links back to Ethereum’s Plasma project, initially developed in collaboration with Buterin.

In other Ethereum scaling news, Scroll has completed its "Euclid" upgrade, pushing the network into its "stage 1" decentralization phase. This update retires some centralized safety mechanisms and marks a major step toward a fully decentralized zk-rollup ecosystem. The Scroll team describes it as their most impactful update to date.

EigenLayer, a restaking protocol built on Ethereum, has also hit a major milestone by launching its long-awaited "slashing" feature. This mechanism penalizes malicious actors by revoking their collateral, finally aligning the protocol with its original security promises.