Ethereum unveils quantum-safe accounts, with a costly catch
Ethereum researchers have proposed quantum-resistant accounts by 2027, though early transactions would carry higher costs until scaling upgrades arrive.
The research group Ethlabs has proposed giving users a route to quantum-resistant accounts before Ethereum can process those transactions at full scale. Its Nov. 11 plan would allow users to adopt the protection earlier, but their quantum-enabled transactions would cost more than ordinary transactions because they take up more space.
The proposal pqai27 targets readiness for quantum-resistant accounts and consensus in 2027. Full-capacity support is a stretch goal for that year, and the target remains a proposal. At "pqai-ready," Ethereum would have post-quantum consensus and every user would have a post-quantum route for their account.
Higher transaction costs
Early protection would carry a transaction cost premium; full scale needs additional protocol work. Ethlabs proposes an optional fallback to calldata from quantum-enabled transactions, carrying their data in regular blocks before post-quantum blobs are available.
The proposal supplies no numerical fee premium, and full-capacity support does not establish fee parity.
Wallet migration needed
A new Ethereum account route needs wallet support. Ethlabs places an orderly user migration, including tooling and wallet support, outside the network upgrade schedule. Protocol readiness would leave practical work for wallets and users before adoption is complete.
Draft EIP-8141, known as Frame Transactions, provides part of the proposed foundation. It would let account code define how transactions are validated and how gas is paid, creating a native route away from today's elliptic-curve signatures and supporting key rotation.
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