The large-scale Ethereum network upgrade, known as Glamsterdam, brings not only long-awaited improvements but also serious risks to the existing ecosystem. My analysis shows that the change to the gas model underlying the upgrade could lead to failures in a significant portion of software. This primarily concerns crypto wallets, blockchain data indexers, and fee estimation tools, which may become incompatible with the new logic.
The Ethereum development team has already officially notified the community of potential issues and strongly recommends conducting comprehensive system testing on the public Plataberget test network. Particular attention should be paid to tools that have a hard-coded maximum gas limit. Such solutions, in my estimation, will almost certainly cease to function correctly and will require urgent updates.
The core of the problem: EIP-8037 and a new dimension of gas
The root of the problem lies in the Ethereum improvement proposal numbered EIP-8037. This upgrade introduces a separate state-gas dimension for operations that create new state on the blockchain. The key change is as follows: while a regular ETH transfer to an existing address will retain its cost of 21,000 gas units, sending coins to a new, previously unused address will incur an additional fee. This fundamentally changes the economics of transactions.
Smart contract developers need to review their code, especially that which relies on the outdated logic that 21,000 gas units always covers any ETH transfer. Analytical tools that calculate fees solely based on gas consumption volume also require adaptation to the new reality, where the cost depends on the type of operation.
Timeline and prospects
The Plataberget test network was launched on August 13, 2026, with the activation of the Glamsterdam upgrade scheduled for August 20. According to my data, before the mainnet release, we can expect approximately a one-month feedback and client software update phase. This will be followed by testing on the Sepolia and Hoodi testnets. This is a critically important period for the entire industry.
Notably, amid these events, Vitalik Buterin has already outlined quantum protection and artificial intelligence as priority directions for Ethereum's development. This indicates that the team is looking far ahead, but the current upgrade requires immediate attention from all ecosystem participants. In my view, Glamsterdam is not just a technical update but a serious stress test for the entire infrastructure, which will show how quickly the market can adapt to fundamental changes.