Base Azul is set to go live on mainnet May 13, bringing a multiproof security system to the Coinbase Layer 2.
Summary
- Base Azul combines trusted execution environment proofs with zero-knowledge proofs, allowing either method to finalize proposals independently.
- When both proof systems agree, withdrawal finality can fall to as little as one day, a significant improvement for users moving assets between chains.
- Empty blocks on the Base network fell 99% over the past two months, from roughly 200 per day to around two.
Base Azul, described by the network as its first fully independent upgrade, is set to activate on mainnet on May 13. At the center of the upgrade is a multiproof system combining trusted execution environment proofs with zero-knowledge proofs, giving the network multiple independent paths to finalize transactions.
Either proof type can finalize a proposal independently, providing redundancy and resilience. When both systems agree, Base says withdrawal finality can fall to as little as one day, a major improvement over the standard multi-day wait on optimistic rollups.
What Base Azul changes for users and developers
Azul also changes Base’s backend software stack. The upgrade makes base-reth-node the network’s sole execution client while adding base-consensus, a new client derived from Kona. All other execution and consensus clients are being dropped, requiring node operators to migrate before mainnet.
Base said reliability has already improved ahead of the launch. Empty blocks fell by roughly 99% over the past two months, from approximately 200 per day to around two. The network also sustained multiple transaction bursts of up to 5,000 transactions per second during the same window, a sharp contrast to the congestion issues that affected the network in January.
The upgrade also aligns Base with Ethereum’s Osaka execution-layer specifications, reducing breaking changes for most developers and applications. Base is running an Immunefi audit competition offering rewards of up to $250,000 for critical vulnerabilities in Azul code.
Context and what comes next
Base is the Coinbase-incubated Ethereum Layer 2 and one of the most active networks by transaction volume in 2026. Azul is framed as a step toward Stage 2 decentralization, a goal the network has pursued progressively since introducing permissionless fault proofs in 2024.
The next Base upgrade after Azul is expected by end of June and will include an enshrined token standard, Flashblock Access Lists, and further withdrawal time reductions.
Base has also confirmed VibeNet will launch as a public devnet in mid-May, giving developers an early environment to test upcoming features before they reach mainnet.
