The recent Ethereum All Core Developers (ACD) call on July 4th highlighted a key debate surrounding the upcoming Pectra upgrade – how much innovation is too much? While developers are making progress on implementing Pectra, the launch of Devnet-1 is delayed to ensure wider client readiness.
Pectra Refinements and Account Abstraction
A major focus of the call was refining EIP-7702, a core feature related to account abstraction. A dedicated subcommittee successfully addressed concerns raised earlier, aiming to maintain flexibility for Externally Owned Accounts (EOAs) while achieving the desired improvements. These changes will likely be integrated into Devnet-2, with Devnet-1 reflecting the current EIP-7702 specifications.
EIP-7212: Simplifying User Experience
The discussion then shifted to EIP-7212, a proposal gaining traction due to its potential to improve user experience in key and wallet management. This improvement introduces support for the r1 cryptographic curve, a widely used algorithm for secure communication and digital signatures. Proponents like Hadrien Croubois of OpenZeppelin argue that EIP-7212 simplifies key and wallet management, reducing complexity and user burden. Additionally, Daniel Lehrner from the Besu client team highlighted the near-universal phone compatibility with r1, making it a natural fit for mobile hardware wallet aspirations within account abstraction.
Balancing Innovation with Pectra’s Scope
However, some developers expressed concerns about adding yet another feature to Pectra’s already extensive scope. Pseudonymous Geth developer Lightclient emphasized the need to prioritize Pectra’s completion over continuous feature additions. Danno Ferrin of Swirlds Labs proposed a compromise: including r1 support at the protocol level (EVM) for broader applicability, although this would cause a significant delay.
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L1 vs. L2 Focus: A Broader Debate
This discussion exposes a deeper philosophical divide within the Ethereum developer community. Geth’s Marius van der Wijden questioned the necessity of r1 on the mainnet (L1) due to the prevalence of rollups (L2) for smart contract functionality. He advocated for prioritizing scalability solutions on L2 rather than feature additions on L1. However, Richard Meissner from Safe argued that improving L1 user experience remains crucial, especially for teams still heavily invested in L1 development.
Decision Postponed: Weighing the Options
Despite the generally positive reception for r1, a formal decision on its inclusion in Pectra has been postponed until the next ACD call. This delay reflects the ongoing need to balance innovation with efficient upgrade implementation for the Ethereum network’s future.
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