ACDC #191 · Dropping Quick Slots, Going all in on the quantum transition
AllCoreDevs - Consensus #191 · 2026-11-12
A signal that Ethereum development's top priority is shifting to quantum computer preparedness
The proposing team withdrew Quick Slots (EIP-8198) themselves, dropping it from the Hegotá candidate list, and BLS signature based decoupled consensus was declared dead. Post-quantum (PQ) transition has effectively risen to become the priority dominating all future forks.
Why it matters
Estimates of when quantum computers and AI will break current cryptography have been pulled forward from 2032 to 2029 within a year, raising the likelihood that future hard forks will focus on swapping out cryptography rather than shipping new features. This marks the start of a long migration in which validators, staking pools, and even hardware wallet makers will need to prepare for key rotation.
Decisions
- Payload hash verification: The decision on consensus-specs PR#5770, which adds block hash verification to execution payload gossip validation, was postponed until Monday's ACDT and the Sepolia and EIP-8037 situations are sorted out. The execution layer (EL) side conclusion will be settled first.
- BLS DC abandoned: BLS signature based decoupled consensus has been abandoned, and related work will proceed only on a post-quantum version. Rather than redesigning consensus and then doing the quantum transition separately, the plan is to do both at once from the start.
- EIP-8483 key registration: EIP-8483, which lets validators and builders pre-register post-quantum keys, has been accepted as a Hegotá candidate (PFI). It is a mechanism that lets the community begin key registration before the fork as soon as the signature scheme is finalized.
- Quick Slots dropped: Quick Slots (EIP-8198) moved from CFI to DFI and was dropped from the Hegotá candidate list. The champion responsible for the proposal withdrew it themselves to focus on quantum preparedness.
- Next call schedule: The next call, ACDC #192, will be held as scheduled on November 26, US Thanksgiving. The group agreed not to make irreversible decisions if key attendees are absent.
Discussion
Quantum/AI threat: what level of emergency is this
After the Devconnect workshop pulled forward the estimate for when quantum computers will break current cryptography (Q-Day) to 2029, participants gauged the response urgency using a DEFCON-style scale modeled on nuclear war alerts.
Keep FOCIL or delay it
Whether to keep FOCIL, the censorship-resistance feature that is effectively the only one with Scheduled for Inclusion (SFI) status in Hegotá, even amid the quantum-transition-first stance, became a point of contention.
PQ Gasper or PQ decoupled consensus
They discussed whether to take the fast path of slotting post-quantum signatures directly into the current Gasper consensus protocol, or to redesign consensus via decoupled consensus, and BLS based decoupled consensus was declared abandoned.
Outcome: Decision finalized 01:09:31
Payload verification: block hash or bid modification
The choice was between a block hash check that brings RLP encoding into the CL versus changing the bid structure, as the method by which the CL confirms the execution payload matches the bid in Glamsterdam's ePBS.
Outcome: Decision deferred 00:18:16
Glossary
- SFI: Scheduled for Inclusion. The status where inclusion in the fork is confirmed
- CFI: Considered for Inclusion. A status where inclusion is being actively considered
- PFI: Proposed for Inclusion. A status where an inclusion proposal has been submitted and is being kept as a candidate
- DFI: Declined for Inclusion. A status where something has been dropped from fork candidacy
- PQ: post-quantum. Cryptography resistant to attacks from quantum computers
- FOCIL: A proposal where multiple validators enforce a transaction inclusion list (IL) to strengthen censorship resistance
- Decoupled consensus: decoupled consensus (DC). A concept that redesigns consensus by separating it from block processing
- Gasper: Gasper. The consensus protocol of Ethereum's current proof-of-stake system