What is RISC-V? RISC-V, pronounced “risk five,” is a modern open-source instruction set architectur
What is RISC-V?
RISC-V, pronounced “risk five,” is a modern open-source instruction set architecture (ISA) based on reduced instruction set computer (RISC) principles. In simple terms, it’s like a blueprint that defines a set of instructions that a processor can execute.
RISC-V is designed to be highly modular, efficient and flexible. Originally developed by the University of California in 2010, the open-source framework gives developers the flexibility to tailor its functionality and use cases, plus offers cost savings compared to proprietary ISAs like ARM or x86. This offers a wide range of uses, from supercomputers to smartphones and now blockchains like Ethereum.
On April 20, 2025, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin unveiled a “radical” new scaling proposal to replace the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) with the RISC-V instruction set architecture, aiming to boost the speed and efficiency of the network’s execution layer. The idea is that RISC-V is the best way to solve the blockchain’s scalability constraints.
“It aims to greatly improve the efficiency of the Ethereum execution layer, resolving one of the primary scaling bottlenecks, and can also greatly improve the execution layer’s simplicity – in fact, it is perhaps the only way to do so.
The idea: replace the EVM with RISC-V as the virtual machine language that smart contracts are written in,” said Buterin.
Ethereum continues to face high transaction fees and reduced transaction volume as users shift to layer 2s for cheaper, faster transactions. This aligns with Ethereum’s scaling strategy post-Merge (2022). Buterin’s idea to reshape the chain is seen as a chance for it to modernize and retain its dominance as a top smart contracting platform.
Did you know? Ethereum’s execution layer has become its main scalability bottleneck. The inefficient processing of smart contracts and transactions due to single-threaded execution, wasteful computational design and complex state management is causing network congestion.
How would RISC-V work on Ethereum?
Adding RISC-V to Ethereum is still just a proposal being discussed by the community and network governance. Buterin outlines several approaches to implement the proposal, including running two virtual machines (VMs) or a complete switch to RISC-V.
The first idea to support VMs would enable contracts to be written and executed in either the existing EVM model or RISC-V. Both contract types would have access to functionality such as persistent storage, holding Ether (ETH) balances and making and receiving calls. Adding to this, the contract could integrate so they can call one another.
An alternative approach, described as “more radical,” would modify the protocol to convert existing EVM contracts. This would require rewriting current contracts to interact with an EVM interpreter, while new contracts would be written directly in RISC-V.
A major challenge for such a drastic change is to avoid breaking existing decentralized applications (DApps) and smart contracts. Ethereum can’t risk breaking existing contracts written in the current EVM code. A transitional solution could involve using an interpreter — essentially a translation layer between different computing languages. This would allow developers to begin building with RISC-V while ensuring legacy EVM contracts continue to function without disruption.
Did you know? In 2022, Ethereum made a leap forward in its energy efficiency and delivered more scalability, security and sustainability. In a process dubbed “The Merge,” the chain switched from a proof-of-work (PoW) consensus mechanism to proof-of-stake (PoS). This involved merging the Ethereum mainnet with a separate PoS blockchain called Beacon Chain.
Key benefits of RISC-V vs. EVM
If RISC-V causes a major shift in the Ethereum architecture, what will be the benefits of making this change? In the long run, RISC-V would enhance the Ethereum smart contracts’ performance and processing.
According to Buterin, the new architecture could theoretically deliver efficiency gains of 100x; in reality, this number will be hard to reach, but gains would still be significant. The efficiency gains are tied to RISC-V’s suitability for both zero-knowledge (ZK) proof systems and general smart contract execution, as it eliminates EVM overhead.
It’s less about replacing the EVM outright and more about using RISC-V as a backend for zkEVM or similar ZK rollups, where proving costs dominate. Scalability improvements would largely come from offloading execution to ZK rollups, with RISC-V optimizing the proving process.
RISC-V smart contracts could run faster and use fewer computational resources. This increased efficiency would likely translate to lower gas fees…
cointelegraph.com