Ethereum enters the final phase of the Glamsterdam hard fork: what will change for the network
Ethereum development teams have moved to the final stage of preparing the major Glamsterdam upgrade. Active testing is currently underway on specialized devnets, which include the full set of planned protocol changes. This is the final "rehearsal" before the codebase is finalized and deployed on public test networks.
At this point, engineers are deploying devnets—early test environments where new code and all Ethereum Improvement Proposals (EIPs) are tested together. This is a critical stage preceding the launch on public testnets and subsequent deployment on the mainnet. The exact activation date has not yet been announced, but according to estimates from participants in the process, Glamsterdam could be launched in the second half of 2026. Many independent analysts agree that the most likely target is the end of August 2026.
The Biggest Update Since The Merge
Glamsterdam, according to Ethereum Foundation lead DevOps engineer Paritosh Jayanthi, will likely be the most significant hard fork since the transition to proof-of-stake (PoS) in 2022. This update is intended to change fundamental concepts of how the network operates and lay the foundation for its further scaling. This is not just about cosmetic fixes, but about deep architectural changes.
Key Innovations of Glamsterdam
The update is based on several key EIPs. The most important is EIP-7732, which introduces built-in separation of block builder and proposer roles (ePBS). Today, this process largely depends on external services, creating risks of centralization and additional "trust assumptions." Implementing ePBS at the protocol core aims to minimize opportunities for manipulation related to maximal extractable value (MEV) and make the ecosystem more decentralized.
The second significant change is EIP-7928, or block-level access lists. This technology will allow Ethereum clients to declare in advance which accounts and smart contracts a block will access. This will make transaction execution faster, more predictable, and simplify optimization for validators.
Additionally, Glamsterdam includes a comprehensive gas cost revaluation package. As Jayanthi explained, high-level computations will become cheaper, while state operations will become more expensive. The goal is to more accurately reflect the real resources consumed by different operations and simplify scaling using zero-knowledge proof systems. Teams are currently focused on testing and explaining the implications of this recalibration to the community.
Cryptalist Analysis: Glamsterdam is not just another update, but a strategic step for Ethereum towards maturity. ePBS addresses one of the most acute MEV problems that has undermined trust in the network for years. And the new gas model is preparation for the era of mass adoption of L2 solutions and zero-knowledge proofs. If the team executes as planned, Ethereum will gain not just improved performance, but a much more sustainable and fair economic model. However, the gas revaluation could be painful for some types of dApps, and the community needs to be prepared for a transition period.