Ethereum Drops eWASM for RISC‑V to Prioritize zkEVM Compatibility
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin confirmed that the project has abandoned the long-planned eWASM upgrade in favor of RISC‑V compatibility. Announced during a Pragma Taipei talk, the pivot reflects delays in The Merge and the rapid advancement of SNARK/zk-proof technology, which made SNARK-friendliness the primary criterion for execution environments. eWASM proved inefficient for producing WebAssembly proofs and added circuit complexity for zero-knowledge verification. By contrast, RISC‑V instruction-set models align with most zkEVM implementations (for example, zkSync and Polygon zkEVM), simplify proof generation and verification, and enable developers to share tools across rollups. The change supports Ethereum’s modular roadmap emphasizing rollups and off‑chain transaction packing with cryptographic proofs back to the mainchain. RISC‑V is presented as more flexible for future protocol upgrades and broader ecosystem participation while preserving decentralization goals.
Bullish
Short-term market impact is likely neutral-to-mildly bullish. The announcement reduces technical uncertainty around Ethereum’s execution-layer roadmap by favoring an approach (RISC‑V / zkEVM) already adopted by leading rollup projects such as zkSync and Polygon zkEVM. Traders often view clearer technical direction and improved zk-proof efficiency as positive for long-term scalability and developer adoption, which can support ETH demand. In the short term, any immediate price reaction may be limited because the change is technical and long-horizon; it mainly affects developer tooling, rollup performance and proof generation costs. Over the medium-to-long term the shift is bullish: simpler, more SNARK-friendly execution increases the odds of faster rollup growth, lower verification costs, and broader ecosystem interoperability — factors that can enhance on-chain activity and ETH valuation. Historical parallels: announcements that clarified scaling roadmaps (e.g., Ethereum’s commitments to rollups, or milestones that improved L2 tooling) tended to support positive sentiment over months rather than trigger instant rallies. Risks: if the transition proves harder than expected or fragments execution environments, that could create short-term uncertainty. Overall, the net effect favors constructive investor confidence in Ethereum’s scaling path.