Ethereum Sets “Hegota” as Post-Glamsterdam Plans, Locking in 2026 Upgrade Rhythm

Ethereum core developers have formally named the network’s next upgrade after Glamsterdam, branding the late-2026 hard fork “Hegota” and further clarifying the protocol’s forward roadmap.

The name combines two parallel tracks of Ethereum development: the execution layer’s “Bogota,” continuing the tradition of Devcon city names, and the consensus layer’s “Heze,” inspired by a star. While the label is now set, developers emphasized that Hegota’s headline Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP) will not be chosen until February.

The decision was finalized during the final All Core Developers Execution (ACDE) call of the year, with meetings scheduled to resume on Jan. 5. At that point, developers aim to lock in the final scope of Glamsterdam, which is expected to be Ethereum’s first hard fork of 2026.

With Pectra and Fusaka successfully deployed in 2025, Ethereum has effectively entered its intended twice-annual upgrade cadence. The strategy is designed to make protocol changes more incremental and predictable, avoiding the need for infrequent but disruptive overhauls. Under this schedule, Glamsterdam is likely to ship in the first half of 2026, with Hegota following later in the year.

Although Hegota remains in early planning, it is expected to absorb longer-term roadmap items or features that fail to make Glamsterdam’s cut. Verkle Trees—widely viewed as a key step toward fully stateless Ethereum clients—are frequently mentioned as a candidate, though no formal decision has been made. Other potential inclusions include state and history expiry mechanisms and further execution-layer optimizations, areas that have gained momentum following recent Ethereum Foundation proposals.

Meanwhile, work on Glamsterdam continues. Proposals still under active discussion include enshrined proposer-builder separation (ePBS) to reduce block-building centralization, block-level access lists to ease state bottlenecks, and gas repricings to better reflect actual resource usage. More ambitious changes, such as shorter slot times, have already been deferred to later cycles and could resurface in Hegota.

Beyond individual upgrades, Hegota’s announcement fits into Ethereum’s long-term, multi-phase technical vision. After The Merge in 2022 transitioned the network to proof-of-stake, development has been framed around The Surge, The Verge, The Purge, and The Splurge. Glamsterdam and Hegota sit squarely within this arc, advancing scaling, statelessness, and long-term simplification as Ethereum looks beyond 2026.