Company Logos Upgrade aims to make the most-used blockchain 99% more energy efficient.NURPHOTO VIA GETTY IMAGES Imagine having to change the engine of a spaceship mid-flight. A similar task is facing Preston Van Loon and a few dozen more developers working on a critical software upgrade to Ethereum, the blockchain underpinning thousands of decentralized applications and ether, a cryptocurrency with a $204 billion market capitalization.
Awaited for years, the upgrade entered its first phase–called Bellatrix–at 7:34 A.M. EST today, setting the stage for the blockchain’s merge with another decentralized ledger named the Beacon Chain and changes in the economics of ether (ETH). If all goes well, around Sept. 15 Ethereum will adopt the Beacon Chain’s method of processing transactions, proof-of-stake, which is approximately 99.95% more energy efficient than the current proof-of-work mechanism.
