PANews reported on March 14 that according to The Block, Ethereum Foundation developers will launch a new "Hoodi" test network on March 17 for the final test of the Pectra upgrade. Previously, Pectra had configuration problems during the activation of the Holesky and Sepolia test networks, which delayed the official release plan.

The Pectra upgrade aims to improve the availability and scalability of Ethereum. The main optimizations include reducing the Layer 2 data availability cost, increasing the staking limit, introducing account abstraction, and enhancing smart contract and wallet functions. If the test goes smoothly, the upgrade may be officially deployed to the Ethereum mainnet as early as April 25.

The Hoodi testnet will focus on validator exit testing to prevent Holseky from being unable to support related research due to a backlog in the exit queue.