governance
Starknet opens 7-day Snapshot vote on becoming an independent L1 over quantum risks
Starknet opens a 7-day Snapshot poll on Oct. 15 asking STRK holders whether to research an independent post-quantum Layer 1; early tally shows 177.6M STRK cast with 99.91% in favor.
Starknet on October 15 opened a seven-day Snapshot poll asking STRK holders whether to begin research on an independent Layer 1 to accelerate post-quantum security, rather than continue as an Ethereum rollup indefinitely. The proposal ID is 0x31dffc8b6f24c580540cc967fdede3d8e9d513c105d3f699a14ae65bd0dc5d74 on the starknet.eth Snapshot space. The Block carried the vote opening; the backdrop was StarkWare's October 8 announcement, covered by Unchained, that it was "actively considering" the move.
What is being voted on
A Yes result would authorize research and further proposals toward a sovereign L1; it is not itself a transition vote. StarkWare, per The Block, would then publish detailed proposals and run additional on-chain polls. A No keeps post-quantum work on the existing L2 path with StarkWare's June 30, 2026 roadmap — replacing Pedersen hashing with BLAKE2 in state commitments, contract addresses and network configuration, and introducing Falcon-512 for consensus signatures.
Early tally from The Block at vote-open:
- STRK cast: 177.6M
- Yes: 99.91%
- No: 0.09%
- Vote window: 7 days (close around Oct. 22, UTC-dependent)
The Snapshot vote weighs delegated voting power only; STRK holders had to delegate before the snapshot to participate.
Why StarkWare says L1 matters now
StarkWare co-founder and CEO Eli Ben-Sasson, in his October 8 X post and at Token2049, framed three requirements for a post-quantum chain:
- Right cryptography. Starknet's proofs are STARK-based and already quantum-resistant; its accounts can adopt post-quantum signatures without a protocol upgrade.
- Crypto agility. Chains need to be able to swap primitives when the threat clock ticks over.
- L1 sovereignty. The post-quantum timetable on Starknet today still inherits from Ethereum's bridge messaging and data-availability layers. Those pieces are the parts Starknet does not directly control.
Starknet's public target is 2027 for a fully quantum-resistant network. Ethereum's own public projection is 2029 — the gap Ben-Sasson is pointing at. StarkWare has said "no timeline for that exists yet" on an L1 transition specifically; the vote only unlocks the research phase.
The structural trade-off
| L2 path (status quo) | L1 path (Yes result) | |
|---|---|---|
| Bridge security | Inherits Ethereum's quantum timetable | Starknet owns it |
| Data availability | Ethereum blobs | Standalone layer |
| Consensus signatures | Falcon-512 for Starknet consensus already planned | Same, L1-native |
| ETH / wrapped-ETH on Starknet | Native | Needs a bridge model Starknet designs |
| Ethereum alignment | Full | Partial — Starknet becomes a peer |
The trade is clean: faster post-quantum rollout at the cost of leaving Ethereum's security envelope. Partisan reactions on both sides line up with that trade-off.
What to watch
- Final tally and quorum. With delegated-only voting, the current ~177.6M STRK represents a small fraction of total supply. Whether total STRK voted matches past Starknet polls (e.g., the September 2024 staking vote) is the governance-legitimacy signal.
- The follow-on proposals. A Yes result triggers a research program, not an immediate transition. The content of the follow-on proposals — specifically the bridge-and-DA design — is where the real debate starts.
- Ethereum response. EF research has been accelerating its own PQ work in 2026. A visible Yes vote on Starknet-as-L1 is likely to pull the Ethereum roadmap forward, or at least elicit a public reply.
- Impact on STRK staking. STRK staking phases are still rolling out through 2026; an L1 transition would change the staking contract's role from securing an L2 to securing the chain itself.
Context
Starknet is the most prominent ZK-rollup to publicly consider rotating off Ethereum since Celestia-style modular designs normalized the "sovereign rollup" vocabulary in 2023. The quantum framing is the trigger, but the governance precedent — a Snapshot vote whose outcome shapes a core L1-vs-L2 identity question — is itself notable. The seven-day window puts the result on October 22, 2026, with any follow-on proposals to come.