The Starknet community has decisively signaled its willingness to chart a radically independent future, voting in overwhelming support of a proposal to research a transition into a post-quantum layer-1 blockchain. This potential departure from Ethereum marks a monumental turning point for the network, capturing the highest level of community engagement in Starknet’s governance history.
The non-binding governance poll, which ran for a duration of seven days, officially concluded on Thursday. Drawing approximately 3,200 voters, the digital ballot recorded a striking 93.52% of total voting power in favor of exploring the ambitious transition. Core developer StarkWare opted to abstain entirely from the voting process, deliberately leaving the monumental decision in the hands of the decentralized community.
Despite the decisive outcome of the poll, Starknet will not immediately sever its ties with Ethereum. The current vote merely authorizes StarkWare and the Starknet Foundation to proceed with intensive research into the feasibility and execution of an independent layer-1 architecture. Any actual migration or structural shift away from Ethereum would ultimately require a separate, binding governance vote in the future. In the interim, Starknet will continue to operate as an Ethereum layer-2 network while research gets underway.
Reflecting on the swift momentum following the vote’s close, StarkWare CEO Eli Ben-Sasson shared immediate next steps with reporters.
"We’re beginning work on a whitepaper even before we start the weekend, and hope to release a draft for public scrutiny in November," Ben-Sasson said.
Starknet Outlines Next Steps for Post-Quantum L1 Research
To channel the momentum generated by the governance vote, StarkWare and the Starknet Foundation have formally established a dedicated working group. This specialized team has been tasked with closely examining the proposed transition and formulating comprehensive, granular technical proposals for the community to evaluate.
According to the official governance proposal, the ecosystem’s native token, STRK, will remain the primary digital asset of the network if the transition moves forward, with no new token planned. Furthermore, existing cryptographic bridges facilitating movement between Starknet and Ethereum will remain open, ensuring continuous liquidity and interoperability throughout the exploratory phase.
The catalyst for exploring this potential network exodus first emerged publicly on October 8, when StarkWare raised alarms regarding Starknet’s long-term dependence on Ethereum for foundational security. Although Starknet currently leverages hash-based STARK proofs and supports programmable accounts capable of eventually adopting post-quantum signatures, its core bridging architecture and data availability layer remain inextricably bound to Ethereum’s overarching upgrade timeline.
This sense of urgency surrounding cryptographic defense has been a vocal priority for StarkWare. In June, the entity unveiled a comprehensive three-phase quantum-resistance roadmap detailing necessary cryptographic upgrades, complex smart-contract migrations, and solutions for Ethereum-dependent infrastructure.
Concurrently, StarkWare’s Quantum Hub reported that it has already successfully tested technology engineered to withstand future quantum computing attacks, managing to process a live transaction directly on Starknet’s active network. Nevertheless, the experimental technology remains in its infancy and has not yet undergone rigorous external security audits.
Ben-Sasson has placed an aggressive target of 2027 on achieving complete quantum-resistance for Starknet, positioning the network well ahead of Ethereum’s projected timeline for similar security milestones.
Expressing skepticism regarding the broader industry’s preparedness, Ben-Sasson pointedly remarked that Ethereum’s target of 2029 to become quantum-safe arrives too late, noting that development deadlines frequently slip in practice.
