Ethereum’s Fusaka Upgrade: What It Means for Institutional Stakers

<h2 id="at-a-glance"><strong>At a Glance:</strong></h2><ul><li>PeerDAS (Peer Data Availability Sampling) launches with Fusaka in on December 3, 2025.</li><li>Dramatically reduces bandwidth requirements for Ethereum validators.</li><li>Enables cheaper, more scalable Layer 2 operations.</li><li><a href="https://p2p.org/?ref=p2p.org" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">P2P.org</a>'s infrastructure positioned to maximize PeerDAS benefits for institutional clients.</li></ul><p>PeerDAS is the core of the Fusaka upgrade. It’s the piece that actually shifts Ethereum’s capacity and changes the economics of data availability for rollups. While the concept is technical, the impact is practical: more room for L2s, more responsibility for node operators, and a more scalable Ethereum base layer.</p><p>Today we’re focusing specifically on PeerDAS: what it changes and what it means for the teams building on top of Ethereum — including P2P.org’s validator and node infrastructure.</p><h2 id="why-peerdas-exists"><strong>Why PeerDAS Exists</strong></h2><p>Rollups publish compressed transaction data to Ethereum in the form of “blobs.”Since Dencun, this has been the cheapest and most scalable way to anchor L2 activity on-chain.</p><p>The bottleneck is how Ethereum verifies that data is available.Today, every node must download every blob in full. With blob throughput capped at 6 blobs per slot, the system simply cannot scale alongside growing L2 usage.</p><p>PeerDAS replaces this model with something lighter, safer, and more scalable.</p><figure class="kg-card kg-image-card"><img src="https://p2p.org/economy/content/images/2025/12/data-src-image-64ebfdd7-a14b-462c-8b0f-288a12d8b873.png" class="kg-image" alt="" loading="lazy" width="1600" height="580" srcset="https://p2p.org/economy/content/images/size/w600/2025/12/data-src-image-64ebfdd7-a14b-462c-8b0f-288a12d8b873.png 600w, https://p2p.org/economy/content/images/size/w1000/2025/12/data-src-image-64ebfdd7-a14b-462c-8b0f-288a12d8b873.png 1000w, https://p2p.org/economy/content/images/2025/12/data-src-image-64ebfdd7-a14b-462c-8b0f-288a12d8b873.png 1600w" sizes="(min-width: 720px) 720px"></figure><p>Source: <a href="https://dune.com/hildobby/blobs?ref=p2p.org"><u>https://dune.com/hildobby/blobs</u></a>&nbsp;</p><h2 id="how-peerdas-actually-works"><strong>How PeerDAS Actually Works</strong></h2><p>Instead of treating blob data as a single chunk that every node must download, PeerDAS breaks each blob into many independent pieces (“columns”). Each node downloads only a fraction of the blob. Other nodes download the remaining pieces.</p><p>Because these pieces are mathematically linked, sampling a subset with enough diversity gives the same confidence as downloading the whole blob.</p><p>This is a shift from full replication to distributed verification.</p><figure class="kg-card kg-image-card"><img src="https://p2p.org/economy/content/images/2025/12/data-src-image-518d4f69-f653-4847-96b4-e31e83629c9d.png" class="kg-image" alt="" loading="lazy" width="1600" height="900" srcset="https://p2p.org/economy/content/images/size/w600/2025/12/data-src-image-518d4f69-f653-4847-96b4-e31e83629c9d.png 600w, https://p2p.org/economy/content/images/size/w1000/2025/12/data-src-image-518d4f69-f653-4847-96b4-e31e83629c9d.png 1000w, https://p2p.org/economy/content/images/2025/12/data-src-image-518d4f69-f653-4847-96b4-e31e83629c9d.png 1600w" sizes="(min-width: 720px) 720px"></figure><h2 id="what-this-enables-for-rollups"><strong>What This Enables for Rollups</strong></h2><p>PeerDAS doesn’t just reduce bandwidth; it expands Ethereum’s capacity.</p><h3 id="1-up-to-8x-more-blob-throughput"><strong>1. Up to 8x more blob throughput</strong></h3><p>The network can safely increase blob limits from 6 → up to 48 blobs per slot over time. More data availability means rollups can post more frequently, at lower and more stable costs.</p><h3 id="2-lower-fees-and-fewer-congestion-shocks"><strong>2. Lower fees and fewer congestion shocks</strong></h3><p>Rollups no longer compete for a narrow DA window, reducing situations where blob fees suddenly spike.</p><h3 id="3-room-for-more-complex-l2-applications"><strong>3. Room for more complex L2 applications</strong></h3><p>Higher bandwidth supports applications that generate more data — social networks, gaming activity, high-frequency trading, and more sophisticated L2 designs.</p><p>Rollups get the most direct benefit from PeerDAS. Their operating environment becomes cheaper and less volatile.</p><h2 id="what-peerdas-means-for-validators"><strong>What PeerDAS Means for Validators</strong></h2><p>This is where the upgrade becomes more nuanced.</p><p>PeerDAS reduces per-node download requirements, but it increases node responsibilities:</p><h3 id="1-stricter-bandwidth-and-peering-expectations"><strong>1. Stricter bandwidth and peering expectations</strong></h3><p>Nodes must reliably fetch, store, and serve their assigned columns. Poor performance impacts peer scoring and can reduce overall network connectivity.</p><h3 id="2-higher-operational-load-under-increased-throughput"><strong>2. Higher operational load under increased throughput</strong></h3><p>More blobs overall still means more data moving through the network. Even with sampling, operators will see more traffic than before.</p><h3 id="3-supernode-dynamics"><strong>3. Supernode dynamics</strong></h3><p>Operators running very large key counts (&gt;3,872 validators per node) are effectively pushed into “supernode” territory, which requires storing and serving all blob data.Some operators will choose this voluntarily for reliability and resilience.</p><h2 id="p2porgs-peerdas-readiness"><strong>P2P.org's PeerDAS Readiness</strong></h2><p>Higher DA throughput and larger validator loads mean the infrastructure layer becomes even more important.</p><p>Our technical team has thoroughly tested PeerDAS functionality across Ethereum testnets, validating that our infrastructure handles the sampling mechanisms reliably while maintaining validator performance.</p><p>What PeerDAS changes for us:</p><ul><li>More bandwidth headroom is required per node</li><li>Healthier peer selection and scoring becomes essential</li><li>Validators must maintain consistent performance under increased blob load</li><li>Monitoring and alerting around DA sampling failures becomes part of normal operations</li></ul><p>When Fusaka activates in December 2025, P2P.org's validators will immediately leverage PeerDAS capabilities. Institutional clients will experience seamless transitions to the new data availability model with zero service interruption.</p><p>This preparation reflects P2P.org's broader approach: we don't wait for network upgrades to catch up. We test thoroughly, optimize proactively, and ensure our clients capture every advantage new protocol features offer.</p><h2 id="the-bottom-line"><strong>The Bottom Line</strong></h2><p>For institutional validators, PeerDAS means better operational efficiency without compromising security. For the Ethereum ecosystem, it means Layer 2 solutions can scale to serve millions of users affordably.</p><p>For P2P.org, it reinforces a simple reality: as Ethereum scales, so do the expectations placed on those who secure it.</p><p>And for P2P.org clients, it means their infrastructure partner is positioned to deliver these benefits from day one of the upgrade.</p><p><strong>Questions about how PeerDAS will impact your operations? </strong></p><div class="kg-card kg-button-card kg-align-center"><a href="https://link.p2p.org/bdteam?ref=p2p.org" class="kg-btn kg-btn-accent">Contact our institutional team</a></div>

<h2 id="at-a-glance"><strong>At a Glance: </strong></h2><ul><li><strong>Programmatic Incentives v2 quadruples restaker rewards</strong> from 1% to 4% of issuance, creating sustainable economics that favor consistent, long-term participation over short-term speculation.</li><li><strong>Duration and reliability now determine rewards</strong>, with operator uptime, infrastructure quality, and clean track records directly impacting how allocations flow through the system.</li><li><strong>EigenAI and EigenCompute launch as functional AVSs</strong>, transforming restaking from concept to operational infrastructure that generates both protocol incentives and service fees.</li><li><strong>Enterprise operators gain clear advantage</strong> as v2's focus on stability and performance aligns directly with institutional-grade infrastructure capabilities.</li></ul><h2 id="a-deeper-look-at-how-eigenlayer-is-recalibrating-restaking-economics"><strong>A Deeper Look at How Eigenlayer Is Recalibrating Restaking Economics</strong></h2><p>In our previous EigenLayer article, we broke down the 4x jump in network rewards and the arrival of EigenAI and EigenCompute — the moment EigenLayer’s economics started shifting in a meaningful way. We’re writing this follow-up because the opportunity has only grown since then. With Programmatic Incentives v2 now shaping how rewards flow through the system, the economics around restaking are entering a phase where early, consistent participants can position themselves ahead of where the ecosystem is clearly moving.</p><h2 id="a-shift-in-how-rewards-work"><strong>A Shift In How Rewards Work</strong></h2><p>Before v2, EigenLayer allocated around one percent of issuance to restakers. That design helped bootstrap adoption but didn’t fully reflect the role restakers and operators play as more services begin relying on EigenLayer’s security.With v2, that allocation increases to four percent. It’s a structural change — not a temporary boost — and it redistributes rewards in a way that creates a more predictable and durable baseline for participants who are actually supporting network operations.</p><p>The protocol also doubled annual inflation from four to eight percent. Most of this increase funds the higher allocation to restakers; another portion is now set aside specifically for ecosystem development. That budget enables the protocol to fund integrations, support new AVSs, and deepen the infrastructure layer around restaking. The outcome is a model that’s built to last longer than short-term incentive windows.</p><h2 id="alignment-over-accumulation"><strong>Alignment Over Accumulation</strong></h2><p>The idea behind v2 is simple: EigenLayer wants to reward people who show up consistently.The old design could attract restakers who entered and exited depending on external market conditions. The new one emphasizes duration, operator reliability, and participation in securing AVSs for more than a single epoch at a time.</p><p>For operators, this change is even more important. Their role becomes clearer. The protocol now explicitly ties operator performance to how restaker allocations flow, making uptime, geographical resilience, and clean operational histories more valuable over time. What EigenLayer is doing here mirrors the logic of Ethereum’s own validator set — predictable behavior is worth more than raw capital.</p><h2 id="the-connection-with-eigenai-and-eigencompute"><strong>The Connection With EigenAI and EigenCompute</strong></h2><p>The timing of Programmatic Incentives v2 is not accidental. EigenCloud launched EigenAI and EigenCompute on mainnet alpha at the same time, and together these releases form a more cohesive picture of where EigenLayer is heading.</p><p>EigenAI offers a verifiable inference layer — a way for developers to request LLM outputs with guarantees that inputs, outputs, and model versions haven’t been altered.EigenCompute does something similar for off-chain execution: a path to confirm that computation occurred correctly, even if it didn’t happen on-chain. The current version uses TEEs to provide these guarantees, and future releases plan to introduce proof-based verification.</p><p>These two AVSs represent the first real applications where restaked capital and operator infrastructure secure something concrete. They turn the abstract idea of “restaking” into something closer to an economic engine. Protocol incentives form the baseline; fees generated by AVS usage add an additional layer above it.The more these services are used, the more meaningful that second layer becomes.</p><figure class="kg-card kg-image-card"><img src="https://p2p.org/economy/content/images/2025/11/data-src-image-b971c9c0-c6cf-40a7-a76f-526c168bf5d1.png" class="kg-image" alt="" loading="lazy" width="1250" height="868" srcset="https://p2p.org/economy/content/images/size/w600/2025/11/data-src-image-b971c9c0-c6cf-40a7-a76f-526c168bf5d1.png 600w, https://p2p.org/economy/content/images/size/w1000/2025/11/data-src-image-b971c9c0-c6cf-40a7-a76f-526c168bf5d1.png 1000w, https://p2p.org/economy/content/images/2025/11/data-src-image-b971c9c0-c6cf-40a7-a76f-526c168bf5d1.png 1250w" sizes="(min-width: 720px) 720px"></figure><p><em>Source:</em><a href="https://docs.eigencloud.xyz/eigenai/concepts/eigenai-overview?ref=p2p.org"><em><u> EigenCloud&nbsp;</u></em></a></p><h2 id="a-new-phase-of-the-restaking-economy"><strong>A New Phase of the Restaking Economy</strong></h2><p>EigenLayer is moving into a phase where the incentives match the ambition of the protocol.Programmatic Incentives v2 gives restakers a clearer picture of how rewards are structured; it gives operators a stronger reason to invest in stability and performance; and it gives AVSs confidence that their security is backed by participants who aren’t constantly cycling in and out.</p><p>The added inflation — directed not just to restakers but to growth initiatives — supports the kind of ecosystem that can sustain AVSs like EigenAI and EigenCompute. These applications need reliable operators, predictable restaker participation, and continued investment in the infrastructure around them. v2 creates that foundation.</p><h2 id="where-p2porg-fits-in"><strong>Where P2P.org Fits In</strong></h2><p>For operators like P2P.org, the shift is straightforward: incentive structures now emphasize the things high-quality operators already do — maintain uptime, distribute infrastructure geographically, and avoid slashing incidents.The alignment between operator behavior and protocol incentives is stronger under v2 than it has been at any point since EigenLayer’s inception.</p><p>P2P.org’s update to a 5% commission rate through 2025 reflects this alignment. It matches the protocol’s new structure and helps restakers participate under the updated parameters with minimal friction.The operator infrastructure — SOC 2 audited systems, multi-region Kubernetes clusters, redundant RPC and monitoring pipelines — is built for this kind of environment.</p><h2 id="looking-ahead"><strong>Looking Ahead</strong></h2><p>Programmatic Incentives v2 is the beginning of EigenLayer’s next chapter. With restaker allocations redesigned, AVSs expanding, and verifiable AI and compute now entering the picture, restaking is moving from a conceptual model into an operational one.</p><p>The economics are more transparent.The incentives are clearer.And the participants — restakers, operators, and AVSs — now have a structure built around long-term alignment instead of short-term fluctuations.</p><p>EigenLayer is building an economic base layer around verifiable compute.v2 is the mechanism that makes that sustainable.</p><div class="kg-card kg-button-card kg-align-center"><a href="https://link.p2p.org/6ff6e5?ref=p2p.org" class="kg-btn kg-btn-accent">Restake $EIGEN with P2P.org</a></div>