Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has ignited discussion within the blockchain community with a proposal to overhaul the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM), suggesting a transition to RISC-V as the underlying architecture for smart contracts. In a recent post on the Ethereum Magicians forum, Buterin argued that this fundamental change could significantly boost the efficiency of Ethereum’s execution layer and pave the way for more robust long-term scalability solutions.
The core motivation behind this ambitious idea, according to Buterin, lies in optimizing the performance of zero-knowledge Ethereum Virtual Machines (ZK-EVMs), which are considered crucial for scaling the network. He stated, “The beam chain effort holds great promise for greatly simplifying the consensus layer of Ethereum, but for the execution layer to see similar gains, this kind of radical change may be the only viable path.”
Currently, Ethereum code written in languages like Solidity undergoes a two-step conversion process: first into EVM instructions and then again to be compatible with zero-knowledge proving systems. Buterin’s proposal aims to eliminate this redundant step by allowing developers to write code that directly compiles to RISC-V.
This direct approach could lead to a dramatic acceleration in proof generation, potentially exceeding a 100-fold increase in speed for processes such as state updates, block execution, and input deserialization. This efficiency gain stems from RISC-V’s inherent compatibility with proving systems, circumventing many of the inefficiencies present in the current EVM setup.
Crucially, Buterin emphasized that this potential architectural shift would be transparent to end-users. Existing smart contracts would continue to function seamlessly and interact with new contracts built on the RISC-V foundation.
Several implementation strategies are currently under consideration. These include running RISC-V and EVM contracts in parallel, employing a RISC-V-based EVM interpreter for backward compatibility, or fully integrating the interpreter into Ethereum’s core protocol, which could potentially pave the way for supporting other virtual machines like Move in the future.
Buterin highlighted Nervos, a blockchain already leveraging RISC-V, as a successful example of this architecture in practice. He also suggested exploring a transition to a faster, proof-friendly main hash function to further enhance overall performance.
This proposal arrives at a time when Ethereum is facing evolving network dynamics. Recent data from Santiment indicates that average transaction fees on the network have dropped to a multi-year low of $0.16 in April, a figure not seen since 2020. This decline is attributed to a shift in user activity towards Layer 2 scaling solutions, which offer faster and cheaper transactions.
Furthermore, Ethereum continues to navigate competitive pressures from newer blockchain platforms like Solana and Sui, known for their high throughput and low fees. While the upcoming Pectra upgrade, slated for May 7, promises improvements, Buterin’s suggestion underscores the possibility that more fundamental structural changes might be necessary for Ethereum to maintain its competitive edge and achieve sustainable scalability in the long run.
