Starknet is to investigate becoming an independent, quantum-resistant Layer 1 blockchain after a community vote overwhelmingly supported exploring a split from Ethereum.
A non-binding governance poll concluded on 22 October, with 93.52% of voting power backing the proposal, the Starknet Foundation announced on Thursday. The result gives StarkWare and the Starknet Foundation a mandate to examine the technical requirements, trade-offs and wider consequences of running Starknet as a standalone network.
The vote does not approve an immediate change. A joint working group will first conduct research and publish its findings before any formal proposals are put to further community votes. No timetable for implementation has been set.
Starknet currently operates as an Ethereum Layer 2 network, relying on Ethereum for settlement and data availability. That relationship could make it more difficult to achieve full protection against future quantum attacks, as some of Starknet’s Ethereum-linked components remain subject to Ethereum’s upgrade schedule.
The proposal comes amid concerns that advances in quantum computing could eventually threaten the cryptographic systems used by many cryptocurrencies. Starknet’s zero-knowledge technology is intended to withstand such attacks, but its wider security also depends on the systems supporting its connection to Ethereum.
StarkWare first proposed examining an independent Layer 1 network on 8 October, saying Starknet could gain greater control over its security by reducing those dependencies.
StarkWare chief executive Eli Ben-Sasson welcomed the result and described the possible change as part of a wider effort to ensure Starknet can adapt to future technological demands.
“Starknet has everything it needs to evolve and improve, be it for post-quantum security, better UX, scale, privacy, or any other desired trait,” Ben-Sasson wrote on X after the vote.
He highlighted Starknet’s cryptographic design, including its zero-knowledge scalable transparent arguments of knowledge, or ZK-STARKs. Those systems use hash-based cryptography intended to offer quantum resistance. Starknet’s programmable accounts can also adopt new signature schemes without requiring a protocol upgrade.
Ben-Sasson said additional work would still be needed before the entire network could be considered resistant to quantum threats.
Privacy and user experience are also central to the network’s longer-term plans. Ben-Sasson pointed to STRK20, a privacy framework intended to enable confidential decentralised finance activity while retaining the composability and usability of blockchain applications.
StarkWare introduced Shadow Accounts earlier this month. The tool allows users to access decentralised applications through pseudonymous identities without publicly connecting those activities to their main wallets.
Under the proposed Layer 1 model, STRK would remain Starknet’s native token and would not be replaced. Bridges connecting Ethereum and Starknet would also continue to operate.
STRK fell by about 14% over the 24 hours following Thursday’s vote, reaching close to $0.054. The move took its weekly decline to 40%, after the token rose above $0.12 on 11 October. It is down nearly 99% from its peak of $4.41 in February 2024.
The next phase will assess whether an independent network can provide the anticipated security advantages without creating unacceptable technical or economic costs. A successful transition would fundamentally alter Starknet’s relationship with Ethereum, turning a prominent scaling solution into a competing base-layer blockchain.
