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Ethereum’s next major upgrade after Glamsterdam already has a name, a growing list of candidates, and a deadline. The Protocol Cluster, the Ethereum Foundation’s core research coordination team, has published an internal tier list ranking approximately 62 Ethereum Improvement Proposals for the Hegotá upgrade, expected to land sometime in 2027.
Client teams now have until September 10, 2026 to submit their own ranked preferences, which will feed into the final selection process. And for the rest of us who don’t run Ethereum clients for a living, there’s a Reddit AMA scheduled for September 16 where the cluster plans to field community questions about the upgrade’s direction.
What’s on the table
Hegotá follows Glamsterdam, which is slated for Q4 2026 and represents Ethereum’s more immediate priority.
The cluster has been evaluating somewhere between 50 and 66 proposals, with the current ranked set sitting at around 62. Alongside the tier list, the Protocol Cluster produced what it calls a “steelman list,” which documents areas of active disagreement among stakeholders.
Ethlabs, an independent R&D lab focused on Ethereum, jumped into the conversation early by releasing its own public tier list on August 16. Their picks highlight three proposals in particular: FOCIL (EIP-7805), Quick Slots (EIP-8198), and Frame Transactions (EIP-8141).
Each of those targets a different part of Ethereum’s infrastructure. FOCIL is aimed at censorship resistance, addressing concerns about block builders having too much power to exclude certain transactions. Quick Slots (EIP-8198) focuses on improving the user experience around transaction processing. Frame Transactions (EIP-8141) tackles quantum computing readiness.
The quantum angle is no longer theoretical
Frame Transactions (EIP-8141) represents a concrete step toward making Ethereum’s cryptographic foundations more resilient against quantum attacks. The fact that it’s earning tier-list endorsements from groups like Ethlabs suggests the community is moving past the “we’ll deal with it later” phase.
Censorship resistance through FOCIL carries a different kind of urgency. As Ethereum’s block production has become increasingly concentrated through MEV supply chains and specialized builders, the ability for any single entity to filter transactions has grown. FOCIL aims to create forced inclusion lists that would make it structurally harder for builders to censor specific transactions.
How the sausage gets made
The September 10 deadline for client team submissions is a key milestone. Their ranked preferences will be aggregated and compared against the Protocol Cluster’s own tier list.
No specific hard fork date has been set for Hegotá. Given that Glamsterdam still needs to ship first in Q4 2026, a 2027 target for Hegotá leaves a reasonable runway.
What to watch
The real signal will come after September 10, when client team preferences are in and the Protocol Cluster can start narrowing the field from 62 proposals down to something more manageable. Historically, major Ethereum upgrades ship with somewhere between 5 and 15 EIPs, meaning the vast majority of the current candidates will be deferred or dropped entirely.
The fact that multiple independent groups, including Ethlabs, are publishing their own tier lists before the official selection is finalized points to a decentralized governance process. The AMA on September 16 should provide the clearest public-facing snapshot yet of where things stand.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
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