Ethereum Developers Narrow 66 Proposals for Hegotá Upgrade

Ethereum core developers are sifting through 66 proposals to define the scope of the network’s next major upgrade, scheduled for 2027, with a key debate centered on whether to integrate new privacy-focused features directly into the protocol. The upgrade, known as Hegotá, currently has only one Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP) formally scheduled for inclusion, but developers are weighing several others that could reshape how privacy applications function on the blockchain.

According to Ethereum Foundation contributor Toni Wahrstätter, writing on Sunday, August 16, the sole confirmed proposal for Hegotá is FOCIL, or Forkchoice enforced inclusion lists. This mechanism aims to bolster the network’s censorship resistance by allowing a committee of validators to enforce the inclusion of pending transactions into blocks, reducing the influence of specialized block builders. However, Wahrstätter argued that additional proposals should be considered alongside FOCIL to unlock "native privacy," enabling privacy applications to operate without relying on external intermediaries. These include Frame Transactions (EIP8141), Keyed Nonces (EIP8250), and Recent Roots for Frame Transactions...