EIP-8142: Ethereum Proposes Moving Transaction Data From Blocks to Blobs

Block-in-Blobs: What EIP-8142 Proposes

A group of Ethereum researchers led by Tony Wahrstätter has published a draft standard called EIP-8142, or Block-in-Blobs. The proposal calls for encoding transaction data directly into blob objects that are published alongside blocks. The initiative aims to reduce bandwidth requirements for validators and eliminate architectural bottlenecks that constrain the network's growth.

In a post titled "Blocks Are Dead. Long Live Blobs," the authors outlined a mechanism that would free validators from having to download and re-execute the full execution payload. Instead, they would work with cryptographic commitments of blob objects.

Why This Matters

Ethereum's current architecture faces a scaling challenge: growing gas limits and larger blocks force validators to process increasing volumes of data. This creates throughput bottlenecks and limits the network's evolution.

Blobs were first introduced in March 2024 with the activation of the Dencun hard fork. Implemented via EIP-4844 (proto-danksharding), they were designed for efficient transmission of large data payloads — as opposed to standard transaction calldata. Blobs allow data to be cryptographically committed and verified without full replication across the network.

How Block-in-Blobs Works

EIP-8142 extends the concept introduced in Dencun. The main execution payload, already encoded in RLP format, is moved directly into blobs. This transforms blob objects from a supplementary data layer into the primary carrier of transaction information.

Validators will verify cryptographic commitments of blobs and eventually transition to data availability sampling (DAS). This mechanism allows them to check small fragments to confirm the existence of the full dataset without downloading it entirely.

The proposal becomes especially relevant with the future adoption of zkEVM systems that use zero-knowledge proofs (ZKP) to confirm transaction processing correctness. ZKPs eliminate the need for re-execution but do not inherently guarantee that data is actually available. Wahrstätter explained that in zkEVM, proofs are verified rather than transactions directly. Without a separate data availability mechanism, information could be withheld even when consensus is reached. Block-in-Blobs is designed to address this vulnerability.

The update would also reshape the fee structure. Currently, Ethereum separates execution gas from blob gas. The new model could merge them into a unified "data gas," equalizing costs across different forms of data availability and preventing overlapping limits.

ERC-8211: Programmable Transactions by Biconomy

Alongside EIP-8142, the Biconomy project and the UX division within the Ethereum Foundation have proposed ERC-8211, a standard that transforms transactions into programmable workflows.

Unlike the current model where parameters are fixed at signing time, ERC-8211 allows operations to fetch on-chain data in real time, verify predefined conditions, and execute multiple sequential steps with a single signature. The primary goal is to reduce failed transactions and enable more complex agentic interactions within DeFi protocols.

Long-Term Roadmap Through the End of the Decade

Both initiatives are part of a broader research effort within the Ethereum ecosystem. Developers have already charted network upgrade paths through the end of the current decade. Previously, Gnosis and Zisk, with support from the Ethereum Foundation, developed a framework to unify the fragmented L2 ecosystem.