Protocol Cluster Update: May 2026

A semi-regular gathering of Ethereum core developers from various client teams, or interop, was recently held in Svalbard, Norway. During the week-long event, the team focused on strengthening and preparing for the next upgrade, Glamsterdam.

This week marked several important milestones, including:

• Establishing a 200M gas limit floor: a reliable post-Glamsterdam target derived through a fusion of ePBS, BAL optimization and EIP-8037 pricing adjustments
• ePBS Stabilized: The multi-client Glamsterdam-devnet pipeline running with external builders has been tested end-to-end on almost all clients.
• EIP-8037 confirmed: Fixed Cost_per_state_byte adopted; Full price reset numbers available through Friday from bal-devnet-6
• Hegotá Laying the foundation: The FOCIL prototype is functional. Basic AA requirements have been scoped. Multi-client development net is the next step

Interoperability also marked the beginning of a leadership transition in the Ethereum Foundation Protocol cluster.

The new cluster coordinators are:

• Will Corcoran
• Kev Weatherburn
• Frederick

team evolution

Over the past year since the announcement of the Protocol Cluster, Barnabé Monnot, Tim Beiko, and Alex Stokes have contributed significant amounts to the ecosystem through their leadership.

Barnabé and Tim will soon be moving on from the Ethereum Foundation and Alex Stokes will be taking a sabbatical, but the protocol cluster that exists today is in large part due to their work. Under their coordination, the protocol launched the track and helped ship Fusaka to mainnet in December 2025, introduced PeerDAS, and raised the mainnet gas limit to over 200M.

Tim, Barnabé, and Alex have shaped the protocol in a way that will outlive our time as cluster coordinators. Thank you, and I look forward to what each of you will do in the future.

New Protocol Cluster Coordinator Information

These team changes are already underway. At Interop, there were a number of impromptu conversations and strategic meetings between the incoming and outgoing groups, which was the perfect setup to begin this transition without disrupting Glamsterdam reinforcements and deliveries. Additional information about the new Protocol Cluster Coordinator:

Will Corcoran. Will is a Research Coordinator within the protocol with extensive cross-team and cross-cluster visibility through work on zkVM proofs, post-quantum consensus, and fast confirmation rules. He has led numerous community calls, breakout rooms, and in-person Protocol events to provide operational understanding of how the Protocol’s efforts interconnect.

Kev Weatherburn. Kev leads the zkEVM team and brings deep expertise at the intersection of research and engineering, along with a first principles approach to technology decision-making.

Frederick. Fredrik leads the Trillion Dollar Security project, Protocol Security, and has been heavily involved in cross-cluster operations.

What should you expect?

The immediate focus is Glamsterdam deliveries, Hegotà preparations continuing, and Strawmap developments.

The Glamsterdam devnets are currently active and scoping for Hegotà is progressing well with FOCIL expected to headline the CL side. Stay tuned for more Protocol Cluster updates from Will, Kev, and Fredrik in the coming weeks!