Ethereum Foundation Team Disbands Protocol Support as Restructuring Deepens

Highlights:

• The Ethereum Foundation closed Protocol Support during its latest organizational restructuring.
• The team coordinated major upgrades, developer meetings, EIP support, and training.
• Several coordination programs now face uncertainty as core funding concerns grow.

The Ethereum Foundation has disbanded its Protocol Support team during a wider restructuring, according to the announcement in an X post on July 9. The unit coordinated developer meetings, upgrade planning, EIP support, and training programs. However, the foundation has not explained where every responsibility will move.

Ethereum Foundation's Protocol Support Team Disbanded

EF Protocol Support said the Ethereum Foundation's Protocol Support team has been disbanded. The team coordinated Ethereum's protocol development process, including core developer meetings, network upgrade tracking, EIP… pic.twitter.com/CHLuEhu6b8

— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) July 10, 2026

Ethereum Foundation Restructuring Ends a Key Coordination Unit

The Ethereum Foundation team created Protocol Support to improve coordination across Ethereum’s development process. The team connected client developers, researchers, EIP authors, and infrastructure providers. It also linked planning and communication.

Soon after its formation, the group supported upgrades, including Berlin, London, and Arrow Glacier. It later helped prepare Ethereum for the Merge through Rayonism, Amphora, and Kintsugi testnets. The team organized calls and tracked testing.

The unit continued its work after Ethereum moved from proof-of-work to proof-of-stake. It supported Shapella, Dencun, and Pectra. It also helped contributors follow upgrade timelines, proposed changes, and testnet progress.

Protocol Support organized All Core Developers meetings and breakout calls. These meetings allowed client teams and researchers to review proposals and resolve implementation issues. Therefore, the team became a key coordination point across Ethereum’s distributed development structure.

Moreover, the group maintained Forkcast, a platform tracking upgrades, EIPs, testnets, and mainnet activation plans. Forkcast provided developers with a single source to track progress. However, the foundation has not yet identified its next manager.

Fellowship Work Helped Train New Ethereum Developers

Protocol Support also managed the Ethereum Protocol Fellowship, which trained developers for core protocol work. Mario Havel and Josh Davis developed the program over four years. The fellowship linked participants with client teams, researchers, and contributors.

The program brought dozens of developers into Ethereum’s core development community. It grew from an apprenticeship project into a training program. In April, the foundation opened applications for its seventh cohort.

However, statements do not explain whether another team will continue the cohort. The same uncertainty affects EIP support, meeting coordination, and upgrade tracking. These functions may move into the new protocol cluster.

On July 8, Havel confirmed the team’s dissolution after more than five years of work. He said he still remains at the “foundation” and will review his next roles. Former team lead William Morris also noted that he had lost his foundation role. Their comments showed that the closure had involved staff departures.

I was getting questions about recent EF layoffs and my situation so I should share something public as well.

I am still part of EF, continuing my work and figuring out what's most needed in the future. However, all of my team, Protocol Support, that I have been part for 5+… https://t.co/KRgKxiXQpa

— Mario Havel (@TMIYChao) July 8, 2026

Wider Restructuring Raises Funding and Coordination Questions

The closure followed reforms announced on June 23. The foundation cut 54 positions, equal to about 20% of its workforce. It then reorganized work into protocol, access, user, community, and institutional layers.

The new protocol cluster remains responsible for Ethereum’s underlying technology. Its tasks include safer upgrades, lower complexity, stronger privacy, better security, and censorship resistance. Developers are also preparing Glamsterdam, which targets block construction, data access, and network performance.

The changes follow earlier reductions within Ethereum research and development. Last year, the foundation reduced its Protocol Research and Development team. It later renamed the remaining group Protocol.

On June 19, Crypto2Community reported that former researcher Trent Van Epps said Ethereum could face a funding crisis within months. He estimated the cost of core development at approximately $30 million annually. He also pointed out that there were no clear replacements for previous funding programs.