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Software for the Ethereum blockchain has been overhauled, drastically reducing its energy usage, its inventor and co-founder tweeted on Thursday.
Most blockchains devour large amounts of energy and have come under fire from environmentalists and some investors. Before the software upgrade, which is known as Merge, a single transaction on Ethereum used as much power as an average U.S. household uses in a week, according to researcher Digiconomist.
The overhaul has changed how transactions on the Ethereum blockchain occur and how ether tokens, the second-largest crypto coin after bitcoin, are created. read more
Ethereum has moved from a "proof of work" system, in which energy-hungry computers validate transactions by solving complex maths problems, to a "proof of stake" system, where individuals and companies act as validators, using their ether as collateral, to win newly created tokens. read more