Ready for Merge Ep. 18 👾

Summary:In this episode, Christine D. Kim discusses the Hegota execution layer (EL) headliner selection with two Ethereum developers: Jannik Luhn, Researcher and Engineer at Brainbot, and Justin Florentine, Besu client developer at Consensys. Both are backing LUCID, a proposal that would introduce encrypted transactions to Ethereum. Together, they unpack the motivation behind LUCID, how the design works in practice, and why they believe it should be prioritized for inclusion in Hegota. Their conversation also zooms out to cover broader questions about Ethereum’s development process, areas for improvement, and the emerging role of AI in protocol governance. This interview was recorded on February 25, 2026.Timestamps:(2:07) Why EEM was retracted from the Hegota headliner discussions(6:02) An overview of how LUCID works(15:08) Concerns about LUCID adoption (25:15) Concerns about LUCID implementation readiness(28:40) Why LUCID over FRAME and SSZ(32:25) Thoughts on the outsized influence of Vitalik and the EF(38:21) Areas for improvement in Ethereum governance(43:39) AI’s role in Ethereum governanceLinks: Jannik’s X profile (https://x.com/AnotherJannik)  Justin’s X profile (https://x.com/robocopsgonemad) Meet the Devs: Justin Florentine podcast episode (https://christinedkim.substack.com/p/mtd-justin-florentine) Brainbot website (https://brainbot.com/)  Consensys website (https://consensys.io/)  Hegota Headliner: LUCID encrypted mempool (https://ethereum-magicians.org/t/hegota-headliner-lucid-encrypted-mempool/27658)   Hegotá Headliner Proposal: EIP-8105 Universal Enshrined Encrypted Mempool (https://ethereum-magicians.org/t/hegota-headliner-proposal-eip-8105-universal-enshrined-encrypted-mempool-eem/27448)  All Core Developers Execution Call #231 agenda and meeting details (https://github.com/ethereum/pm/issues/1931) ACD After Hours: ACDE #230 🌙 post covering LUCID vs EEM (https://christinedkim.substack.com/p/acde-230) ACD After Hours newsletter (https://christinedkim.substack.com/s/acd-after-hours) Song Credits:Special thanks to Calios for the music featured in this episode. You can listen to the full track, “Our Lives,” and other songs by Calios on Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/artist/6qs62M8pLHGZuttTwgP6JK). Get full access to Christine D. Kim at christinedkim.substack.com/subscribe