Starknet Layer 1 Plan Aims for Quantum Resistance by 2027

A Starknet layer 1 is now on the table. The Ethereum scaling network said on X that it is "actively considering becoming an L1," adding that the move "would enable Starknet to become the first fully quantum-resistant network, with 2027 as our target," Decrypt reported on Friday, October 9, 2026.

What happened

Starknet is a layer 2, a network that batches transactions and relies on Ethereum, the base chain, for security. A layer 1 validates and secures its own transactions. The idea was floated by StarkWare chief executive Eli Ben-Sasson in an October 8 thread, in which he said the quantum threat "may be MUCH closer than we think" and that the pace of AI in mathematics adds a second risk. He echoed the "bunker mode" phrase popularised days earlier by Ethereum researcher Justin Drake, who had said when the Ethereum Foundation set up its post-quantum team that "timelines are accelerating," Decrypt noted.

Decrypt summed up the pitch: quantum computers could one day crack the elliptic-curve cryptography behind the digital signatures that prove ownership of coins on Bitcoin and Ethereum, and Starknet wants to be ready first.

The market reacted quickly. STRK traded near $0.073 on Friday, up about 20% in 24 hours and more than double the roughly $0.03 it fetched in April, when StarkWare cut staff to chase revenue, according to Decrypt.

The message has shifted in tone over two days. The Defiant reported that StarkWare later called the L1 shift its "clearest path forward," while noting that Starknet still settles on Ethereum and that its official account had described the move as "a question, not a decision" a day earlier.

Why it matters

The argument for a Starknet layer 1 is about control of the upgrade schedule. Ben-Sasson wrote that, as a layer 2, Starknet can only be as quantum-safe as its base layer and needs Ethereum to move "real fast." Decrypt said Ethereum's own roadmap targets core post-quantum infrastructure around 2029, per ethereum.org, after the Ethereum Foundation formed a dedicated post-quantum team in January. Ben-Sasson said Starknet could reach quantum resistance by 2027, two years earlier, and noted that Bitcoin has made no comparable commitment.

StarkWare's case rests on its technology. In a roadmap published June 30, the company said STARKs, the core of Starknet's proof system, rely on collision-resistant hash functions rather than elliptic-curve arithmetic, and that native account abstraction already lets users deploy a post-quantum wallet. Decrypt added that some elliptic-curve components remain and that the roadmap commits to replacing them. The same StarkWare document argued that the weak spot for most blockchains is the authentication layer, where signatures rely on elliptic curves that a large quantum computer running Shor's algorithm could break. It said Bitcoin's coin-tracking model carries such exposure when funds are sent to previously spent addresses, that Ethereum has released a multi-year migration plan, and that Solana's transaction format and signature checks are built around elliptic-curve cryptography.

The trade-offs are significant. Becoming a layer 1 would mean Starknet secures itself instead of borrowing Ethereum's protection, which is the defining feature of a layer 2. Decrypt pointed out that the statement does not explain how existing applications and users would move, and that Starknet would take on full responsibility for its own safety and development, a heavy load given Ethereum's scale and activity. The debate also lands as layer 2 networks face pressure on their business models, as our report on the Abstract layer 2 shutdown showed, and as the industry argues over the AI and quantum risks we examined in our long read on crypto bunker mode.

Not everyone shares the urgency. No quantum computer can break today's systems, and experts disagree on when one might, Decrypt noted, citing Strategy co-founder Michael Saylor's view that banks and tech giants would be hit first.

What's next

So far there is a stated intention, not a plan. No governance proposal, migration timetable or technical specification for a Starknet layer 1 has been published in the sources we reviewed. The next signals to watch are a formal proposal from StarkWare or the Starknet community, details on how assets and applications would move, and whether Ethereum's post-quantum timeline accelerates enough to make the move unnecessary.

For STRK holders, the jump shows how strongly the market responds to narrative shifts, and how quickly those moves can reverse if a plan does not follow. This article is for information only and is not investment advice.