The Ethereum Foundation (EF), a nonprofit supporting Ethereum development, is turning its long-running post-quantum research into a public engineering push, forming a dedicated Post-Quantum team and calling the effort a top strategic priority for the network.
EF researcher Justin Drake said the new group will be led by Thomas Coratger, with support from Emile, who Drake described as a key talent behind “leanVM.”
Drake framed leanVM as a central part of Ethereum’s broader approach to post-quantum security, arguing that timelines are accelerating and that Ethereum should move into a construction phase instead of keeping work in the background.
Today marks a turning point in the Ethereum Foundation’s long-term quantum strategy.
We have formed a new Post Quantum (PQ) team, led by the brilliant Thomas Coratger (@tcoratger). Joining him is Emile, one of the world-class talents behind leanVM. leanVM is the crypto…
-Justin Drake (@drakefjustin) January 23, 2026
The announcement comes as crypto markets have become more sensitive to quantum risk holders, even if the practical threat remains a longer-term issue.
Quantum computing uses new types of processors that could one day break current encryption much faster than regular computers. Blockchain developers are concerned that it could eventually expose wallet keys, forcing networks to update cryptography long before that risk becomes real.
The biggest problem for large networks is not a single turning point, but the time it takes to securely transition, update wallets, and move users to new formats without disrupting daily use.
Drake outlined several short-term measures. A biweekly developer session focused on post-quantum transactions, led by Antonio Sanso, is expected to begin next month. The agenda is aimed at user-facing defenses, including dedicated cryptographic tools within the protocol, account abstraction paths, and long-term work to add transaction signatures using leanVM.
EF is also pouring money into crypto research. Drake said he is announcing a $1 million Poseidon Prize to strengthen the Poseidon hash function and pointed to another $1 million post-quantum initiative called the Proximity Prize.
On the engineering side, Drake said multi-client post-quantum consensus development networks are already running, with multiple teams involved and weekly interoperability calls to coordinate.
Ethereum also plans more community work. Drake said the EF will host a post-quantum event in October and a post-quantum day in late March before EthCC, along with educational efforts including a series of videos and materials focused on the company.
Others in the ecosystem echoed the urgency. Pantera Capital XX Franklin Bi argued that traditional finance could take years to update systems, while blockchains can coordinate a complete software transition more quickly.
