Bitcoin BLAKE2b Fork Planned for September 1 Amid Ongoing Debate

Developers backing BIP‑110 are organizing a distinct BLAKE2b proof‑of‑work network slated for a September 1 test launch. The effort follows the original BIP‑110 enforcing branch, which produced only two blocks and attracted less than 3 % miner support, leaving it far behind Bitcoin’s dominant chain.

Background on BIP‑110

The initial BIP‑110 proposal sought a temporary soft fork to limit certain ways of embedding non‑financial data in transactions, such as large OP_RETURN outputs and scripts exceeding 256 bytes. Proponents argued the limits would reduce storage demands for node operators, while critics preferred market‑driven fee mechanisms.

From Soft Fork to Hard Fork

The enforcing branch of BIP‑110 split from the main network in August but failed to attract significant mining power. Consequently, supporters are now planning a hard fork that replaces Bitcoin’s SHA‑256d mining algorithm with BLAKE2b, creating a separate asset and mining ecosystem.

Technical and Infrastructure Challenges

• Existing SHA‑256 mining hardware cannot be repurposed for BLAKE2b without new equipment.
• The new chain uses BLAKE2b block headers, which are incompatible with current light clients and indexers.
• No major exchange, wallet, or Lightning implementation has publicly committed to supporting the BLAKE2b network.
• Replay protection remains an open issue; transactions could be valid on both chains unless safeguards are applied.

Planned Test and Timeline

A rehearsal is scheduled for September 1, with the possibility of preserving a successful test in a Bitcoin Knots 29.4.1 release. Technical problems could require an additional release candidate and a reset to the last SHA‑256 block, making the date a target rather than a fixed activation point.

Community Dispute

On August 31, a public exchange occurred between BIP‑110 supporter Loogart and Ripple co‑founder David Schwartz, who clarified that neither Ripple nor the XRP Ledger have any technical role in the proposed fork.

Outlook

The practical impact of the BLAKE2b network depends on whether it can attract sufficient miners, developers, wallet providers, and trading venues after launch. Until such support materializes, claims about its ability to replace or significantly affect Bitcoin remain speculative.