Key facts
- The Ethereum Foundation is dropping the Poseidon hash function for its post-quantum plans.
- Researcher Justin Drake announced the shift away from Poseidon.
- The decision is due to recent advances in SNARKs technology.
- Conventional hashes like SHA or BLAKE are now considered efficient enough.
- The foundation will use SHA or BLAKE in its post-quantum architecture.
The Ethereum Foundation has decided to discontinue the use of the Poseidon hash function in its post-quantum cryptography strategy. This significant pivot was announced by researcher Justin Drake, who cited recent technological progress in SNARKs as the primary driver for the change. Drake indicated that conventional hashing algorithms, including SHA and BLAKE, are now considered sufficiently efficient for the foundation's post-quantum architecture. The move away from Poseidon suggests a re-evaluation of the cryptographic primitives needed to secure Ethereum against future quantum computing threats. The foundation's adoption of SHA or BLAKE signals a preference for well-established and widely vetted cryptographic standards in its ongoing development efforts.