Base announces 'Azul' upgrade

Published April 23, 2026 by The Daily Scout

- Base published details for its first independently built network upgrade, named Azul, targeting mainnet activation on May 13. - Azul is billed as a step toward Base’s “final L2 stage” and independent engineering cadence. - An autonomous upgrade schedule signals Base’s push to be seen as a maturing L2 beyond Coinbase’s immediate control. (thedefiant.io).

Why it matters

Base says its first independently built network upgrade, Azul, is headed for mainnet on May 13, 2026. (blog.base.dev) The upgrade is already live on Base Sepolia testnet, and Base told node operators to move to two Base-native clients: `base-reth-node` for execution and `base-consensus` for consensus. Older clients including `op-node`, `op-geth`, `op-reth`, `nethermind`, and `kona` will not support the upgrade. (docs.base.org) Azul adds Ethereum Osaka features, a new multiproof system, and a simplified client stack. Base said the new stack has already cut empty blocks by about 99%, from roughly 200 a day to about 2, and handled multiple bursts of 5,000 transactions per second. (blog.base.dev) (specs.base.org) A layer 2 network is a faster chain that batches activity and settles it back to Ethereum later. The tradeoff is withdrawals can take time, because the system needs a way to prove the batched transactions were valid before funds move back to Ethereum. (thedefiant.io) (blog.base.dev) Base says Azul tackles that with “multiproofs,” which pair a trusted execution environment prover with a zero-knowledge prover. Either proof can finalize on its own, and when both agree, withdrawals can settle in as little as one day. (blog.base.dev) (thedefiant.io) Base tied that design to “Stage 2” decentralization, a label used for rollups that reduce reliance on a single operator or single proof path. The company said the system can detect and handle proof failures onchain, and that permissionless zero-knowledge proofs can override permissioned trusted-execution proofs if they conflict. (blog.base.dev) (thedefiant.io) The independence point is central to the announcement. Base said Azul is the first upgrade built on its new internal foundation after consolidating onto a “streamlined Base stack,” rather than shipping only on the Optimism stack’s shared cadence. (blog.base.dev) (github.com) That comes as Base is trying to support bigger ambitions than token trading alone. In a strategy post published March 31, Base said it processed more than $17 trillion in stablecoin volume in 2025, launched the Base App in more than 140 countries, and is focusing in 2026 on global markets, payments, and builders. (blog.base.org) Security is still the immediate question before the switch flips. Base said every onchain component and proof system in Azul went through internal and external audits, and it is running an Immunefi competition from April 21 through May 4 with a maximum reward pool of $250,000 for critical bugs. (blog.base.dev) If the May 13 activation goes ahead as planned, Azul will be the clearest sign yet that Base wants to look less like a Coinbase side project and more like a rollup setting its own engineering schedule. (blog.base.dev) (thedefiant.io)

Key numbers

Base published details for its first independently built network upgrade, named Azul, targeting mainnet activation on May 13.
Azul is billed as a step toward Base’s “final L2 stage” and independent engineering cadence.
An autonomous upgrade schedule signals Base’s push to be seen as a maturing L2 beyond Coinbase’s immediate control.
Base says its first independently built network upgrade, Azul, is headed for mainnet on May 13, 2026.

What happens next

Base says its first independently built network upgrade, Azul, is headed for mainnet on May 13, 2026.
Older clients including op-node, op-geth, op-reth, nethermind, and kona will not support the upgrade.
Base said every onchain component and proof system in Azul went through internal and external audits, and it is running an Immunefi competition from April 21 through May 4 with a maximum reward pool of $250,000 for critical bugs.

Sources

Quick answers

What happened in Base announces 'Azul' upgrade?

Base published details for its first independently built network upgrade, named Azul, targeting mainnet activation on May 13. Azul is billed as a step toward Base’s “final L2 stage” and independent engineering cadence. An autonomous upgrade schedule signals Base’s push to be seen as a maturing L2 beyond Coinbase’s immediate control. (thedefiant.io).

Why does Base announces 'Azul' upgrade matter?

Base says its first independently built network upgrade, Azul, is headed for mainnet on May 13, 2026. (blog.base.dev) The upgrade is already live on Base Sepolia testnet, and Base told node operators to move to two Base-native clients: base-reth-node for execution and base-consensus for consensus. Older clients including op-node, op-geth, op-reth, nethermind, and kona will not support the upgrade. (docs.base.org) Azul adds Ethereum Osaka features, a new multiproof system, and a simplified client stack. Base said the new stack has already cut empty blocks by about 99%, from roughly 200 a day to about 2, and handled multiple bursts of 5,000 transactions per second. (blog.base.dev) (specs.base.org) A layer 2 network is a faster chain that batches activity and settles it back to Ethereum later. The tradeoff is withdrawals can take time, because the system needs a way to prove the batched transactions were valid before funds move back to Ethereum. (thedefiant.io) (blog.base.dev) Base says Azul tackles that with “multiproofs,” which pair a trusted execution environment prover with a zero-knowledge prover. Either proof can finalize on its own, and when both agree, withdrawals can settle in as little as one day. (blog.base.dev) (thedefiant.io) Base tied that design to “Stage 2” decentralization, a label used for rollups that reduce reliance on a single operator or single proof path. The company said the system can detect and handle proof failures onchain, and that permissionless zero-knowledge proofs can override permissioned trusted-execution proofs if they conflict. (blog.base.dev) (thedefiant.io) The independence point is central to the announcement. Base said Azul is the first upgrade built on its new internal foundation after consolidating onto a “streamlined Base stack,” rather than shipping only on the Optimism stack’s shared cadence. (blog.base.dev) (github.com) That comes as Base is trying to support bigger ambitions than token trading alone. In a strategy post published March 31, Base said it processed more than $17 trillion in stablecoin volume in 2025, launched the Base App in more than 140 countries, and is focusing in 2026 on global markets, payments, and builders. (blog.base.org) Security is still the immediate question before the switch flips. Base said every onchain component and proof system in Azul went through internal and external audits, and it is running an Immunefi competition from April 21 through May 4 with a maximum reward pool of $250,000 for critical bugs. (blog.base.dev) If the May 13 activation goes ahead as planned, Azul will be the clearest sign yet that Base wants to look less like a Coinbase side project and more like a rollup setting its own engineering schedule. (blog.base.dev) (thedefiant.io)