The Zcash Foundation announced the release of Zebra 7.0.0-rc.0, the first release candidate for NU7, the next upgrade to the Zcash network. NU7 testnet activation is expected at block height 4,465,026, approximately on October 6, 2026. This upgrade will reduce the ZEC block time from 75 seconds to 25 seconds and add new limits on shielded transactions to prevent spam, with mainnet activation scheduled for October 20, 2026.