Vitalik Buterin proposes RISC-V overhaul to revive Ethereum’s execution layer

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has made a radical proposal to change the underlying layer of Ethereum. Buterin proposed replacing ETHE’s current Virtual Machine (EVM) contract language in April 2025 with upgradeable RISC-V instruction set architecture versions.

For context, RISC-V is an open-standard, free processor architecture known for its efficiency and flexibility. Buterin makes the case that RISC-V adoption could significantly expedite Ethereum’s execution layer.

Buterin identified several bottlenecks responsible for entrenching the growth of Ethereum. He mentioned better availability sampling, a more competitive atmosphere between block producers, and ZK-proving improvements.

Thanks to zero-knowledge proofs, key technologies for fast, cheap, and more private transactions. Buterin said Ethereum would have to take “radical steps” to remain competitive.

“The beam chain initiative is a very promising way to simplify the consensus layer of Ethereum by a large margin,” he wrote. “But radical changes of this kind could be the only way to drive similar improvements for the execution layer.”

The Ethereum community has struggled to find solutions for scaling issues for some time. This latest proposal indicates that a full reworking of the execution layer may be required for Ethereum to survive the next wave of blockchain innovation.

Ethereum struggles to boost revenue amid fee collapse

Ethereum is facing economic pressure, with transaction fees—the network’s largest source of revenue—falling to their lowest levels in years.

Transaction fees on the Ethereum base layer averaged approximately $0.16 per transaction in April 2025. This is the lowest figure the network has seen since 2020.

Blob fees — the special fees created by Ethereum’s layer-2 solutions — have collapsed. For the week ending March 30, blob fees amounted to just 3.18 ETH, roughly $5,000 at current prices. That’s a staggering 95% decline since mid-March.

Experts say the fees have declined not because of economic conditions but because users are migrating to the Ethereum base layer. Instead, they select cheaper and quicker layer-2 networks like Arbitrum and Optimism.

Layer-2s have made transactions cheap, but they’ve also eviscerated the core revenue of Ethereum. Many fear Ethereum’s base layer is being “cannibalized” by its scaling solutions.

This means fewer users are completing normal transactions, said Brian Quinlivan, a director at Santiment. Instead, they’re using smart contracts or layer-2s that charge less.

Should this continue, Ethereum may have dire financial issues. Investor sentiment is already brittle. Some analysts expect Ether (ETH) prices to collapse to near $1,100 if things go south.

Ethereum community responds to RISC-V proposal

Vitalik Buterin’s RISC-V concept is rocking the Ethereum Community. Some developers applaud it as a bold step that could help future-proof Ethereum. They think the move to RISC-V will make Ethereum more competitive with newer and speedier blockchains such as Solana and Sui.

However, others are worried that the redesign of the execution layer would be a huge project that is fraught with risks. It would involve building portions of Ethereum from the ground up. That can take years at a minimum, require tons of resources, and present new vulnerabilities.

It also raises questions about how developers and projects would port over old smart contracts to the new system. This can cause a lot of trouble when it comes to backward compatibility.

The proposal has led many to conclude that Ethereum needs to evolve to stay relevant. As next-gen blockchains tempt users and developers onward with minuscule wait times and snap-popper speeds, Ethereum must move forward while innovating to retain its essential ethos.

The community has drafted a proposal for public comment in response to the proposal. If accepted, it could signal the start of a new chapter for Ethereum — when the network redeems itself for a future where competition will abound.

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