ProgPoW is an ASIC-resistant PoW algorithm setup to substitute ETHhash, the prevailing hashing algo for the platform.
First discussed two years before, it unexpectedly resurfaced as a solid idea to be implemented sometime in the mid-2020, after an announcement by core developers.
Top participants submitted an appeal on Github to document their disagreement about the plan. Drafted by ETHBoston Organizer Justin Leroux, the request asserts that the intended plan is devoid of community backing:
“Because Ethereum is a global platform with a large and diverse group of stakeholders, it is critical that major changes to the protocol have a clear purpose and broad support. EIP-1057 clearly lacks that support, yet activation is still being considered.”
ProgPoW is a variant of the proof-of-work (PoW) algorithm, which is intended to simplify the transfer of Ethereum’s blockchain protocol to proof-of-stake (PoS).
It has been structured to bridge the drawbacks between Ethereum ASIC miners and graphics processing units (GPU) and safeguard the Ethereum network against dominant ASIC hardware manufacturers.
Advocates of ProgPow trust the overhaul could assist in stopping a miner-backed fork in the months leading to PoS protocol implementation.
Nevertheless, opposing parties point out that the polar opposite could happen. The document reads as follows:
“A stated goal of ProgPoW is to avoid contentious forks while transitioning to proof-of-stake, yet it is at odds with its own aims if activation increases the likelihood of that undesired outcome.”
Ethereum intends to move away from PoW (Proof-of-Work) protocol to PoS (Proof-of-Stake) after the roll out of the initial stage of ETH 2.0 sometime in the middle of this year.