Ethereum Foundation releases Q1 funding list: continuing support for ZK, cryptography, and protocol infrastructure

ChainCatcher Message: The Ethereum Foundation has released the list of grant and ecosystem support projects for the first quarter of 2026, focusing on cryptography, zero-knowledge proofs (ZK), protocol security, and core infrastructure development, continuously strengthening Ethereum’s underlying technology stack and long-term scalability.

This quarter’s grants cover multiple key areas. On the protocol and client layer, including optimizations for the Geth and Erigon clients, upgrades to the Lighthouse client, and development of network monitoring tools following the Pectra upgrade, the focus is on improving network performance and attack resistance. In addition, projects such as HSM key management, validator security tools Vero, and the DISC-NG node discovery mechanism are also supported to enhance node-layer reliability and institutional-level compliance capabilities.

In the fields of cryptography and ZK, the Foundation continues to step up its investment in Poseidon hash function analysis, Gröbner basis attack research, exploration of post-quantum and homomorphic encryption hybrids, and formal verification of RISC-V zkVM, further strengthening the security boundaries of zero-knowledge proof systems and cryptographic infrastructure.

In the developer ecosystem, upgrades to the BuidlGuidl education program, community building around ERC standards, a WalletConnect cleared-signature library, and ongoing development of the Open Creator Rails toolchain help lower development barriers and improve the security of user interactions. Meanwhile, L2BEAT continues to provide Layer2 transparency analysis, strengthening the data infrastructure for the scaling ecosystem.

In addition, the Foundation supports privacy technologies (such as Tor integration and Privacy Pool SDK), decentralized identity (did:ethr standard upgrades), DAO governance research, and public product experimental projects, covering a complete ecosystem structure from the protocol layer to the application layer. Overall, this round of funding continues Ethereum’s long-term investment in its three core directions—“cryptography + ZK + protocol engineering”—emphasizing support for future multi-layer expansion and institutional application deployment through infrastructure and standardized development.