In a pivotal move that marks a new chapter in Ethereum’s development, the Ethereum Foundation has announced a significant internal restructuring of its core research and development team. This reorganization, unveiled in an official blog post, is designed to streamline efforts around the most pressing challenges Ethereum currently faces: scalability, data availability for rollups, and user experience.
Ethereum Foundation Restructures Protocol Team to Focus on Scaling, Rollups, and User Experience
As Ethereum continues to evolve and adapt to increasing demand, the Foundation recognized the need for a more focused and agile approach to protocol development. The former “Protocol Research and Development” group has now been rebranded simply as “Protocol.” This shift in name reflects a much deeper structural and strategic transformation, one aimed at consolidating expertise and aligning technical priorities with Ethereum’s long-term roadmap.
The newly-structured Protocol division will focus on three primary objectives. First, it will intensify work on scaling Ethereum’s base layer, often referred to as Layer 1. This objective is being led by Tim Beiko and Ansgar Dietrichs, two longtime contributors to Ethereum core development. Their focus is on enhancing throughput and network efficiency without compromising on the decentralization and security principles that underpin Ethereum’s design. As the ecosystem becomes increasingly reliant on rollups and Layer 2 technologies, a scalable and efficient base layer is more critical than ever.
Second, the Protocol team is committing substantial resources to expanding blobspace, a relatively new concept in Ethereum that plays a crucial role in enabling rollup scalability. With the introduction of proto-danksharding through EIP-4844, blobspace has emerged as a critical mechanism for Layer 2 solutions to publish data to Ethereum at reduced costs. The team responsible for this area, led by Alex Stokes and Francesco D’Amato, will work on increasing data availability and ensuring blobspace can scale alongside demand. Their work supports Ethereum’s broader goal of becoming a modular, rollup-centric network.
The third focus area is user experience—an often-overlooked aspect of protocol design that has become increasingly relevant as Ethereum seeks mass adoption. Barnabé Monnot and Josh Rudolf are heading efforts to improve usability across the network. This involves everything from refining wallet interactions and onboarding flows to improving gas estimation and supporting account abstraction. By improving the everyday experience for developers and users, the Ethereum Foundation aims to make the protocol more accessible and intuitive, without sacrificing its technical robustness.
These three initiatives—scaling Layer 1, expanding blobspace, and enhancing user experience—are interconnected and represent a holistic approach to Ethereum’s next phase of growth. However, achieving this focus has come at a cost. As part of the restructuring, the Ethereum Foundation has laid off a number of team members from its R&D group. While specific figures were not disclosed, the Foundation acknowledged the difficulty of the decision and emphasized that it was necessary to realign the organization’s focus and maintain operational efficiency.
In its official statement, the Ethereum Foundation said, “Protocol is now a more united and leaner organization with more focused teams.” This sentiment underscores a broader trend within the Ethereum ecosystem: the need for precise, high-impact work that moves the protocol forward while eliminating operational overhead. The Foundation clarified that these changes are not motivated by financial concerns but by the desire to adapt to Ethereum’s evolving needs and deliver more effective results.
The timing of the restructure is also noteworthy. It comes amid broader changes within the Foundation itself, including new leadership appointments earlier in 2025 and a renewed emphasis on modular architecture and client diversity. Ethereum is in the midst of a major transformation—from a general-purpose blockchain into a highly efficient, decentralized settlement layer for Layer 2 rollups and application-specific chains. This transition requires not only technological innovation but also organizational agility.
The community’s reaction to the announcement has been largely supportive. Developers and ecosystem stakeholders understand the complexity of “shipping protocol,” as the Foundation put it. The Ethereum roadmap has always been ambitious, with milestones like The Merge and The Surge demonstrating both technical sophistication and long-term vision. With the Protocol team now streamlined and realigned, the Foundation is better positioned to meet its goals and respond to new challenges.
This change also holds implications for the wider Ethereum ecosystem. A leaner, more focused Protocol team means faster decision-making, tighter feedback loops, and stronger collaboration with external teams—such as client developers, rollup builders, and standards organizations. In practical terms, we can expect accelerated progress on key upgrades like EIP-4844, better developer tooling, and a more seamless user experience across the Ethereum stack.
Looking ahead, the Foundation’s restructuring sends a clear signal: Ethereum is preparing for its next phase of growth, one centered on performance, modularity, and usability. While the short-term effects may include some turbulence, the long-term benefits are likely to be substantial. As Ethereum becomes more scalable, user-friendly, and rollup-ready, it strengthens its position as the leading platform for decentralized applications, financial services, and innovation in Web3.
Ultimately, this restructuring marks more than just a change in team structure—it reflects Ethereum’s evolving identity. By embracing a sharper focus on protocol fundamentals, the Ethereum Foundation is reinforcing its commitment to building a decentralized, efficient, and inclusive future.