The story of Polygon zkEVM Mainnet Beta enters countdown mode. Polygon Labs has confirmed that it will shut down this network on July 1, 2026, completing its "sunset," which means that the interactive records, on-chain footprints, and asset distribution that were once seen as a potential airdrop nurturing ground will enter the settlement phase within the next two weeks. For users monitoring airdrop radars, the meaning of that Polygon zkEVM card on the page is changing: it no longer points to "what tasks can still be done" or "how many more interactions can be brushed," but instead reminds "which assets are still on-chain" and "which positions need to be handled as soon as possible."
The date has now reached June 15, 2026, with only about two weeks remaining until the shutdown date, where time pressure and asset safety begin to compound. The official timeline was fully announced in June 2025, providing the community with nearly a year to migrate, and now it has entered a decision-making phase — on-chain wallet assets must bridge back to the Ethereum mainnet via ui.agglayer.dev before the deadline, and assets locked in DeFi protocols or other contracts must be manually extracted and migrated out before July 1, or media reports have pointed out the risk of permanent loss of funds. This shutdown only targets Polygon zkEVM Mainnet Beta; other networks such as Polygon PoS, Polygon CDK, remain active, and future airdrop radar opportunities in the Polygon ecosystem will increasingly shift to these chains. Therefore, for users tracking Polygon clues, the primary task at this stage has shifted from "continuing to participate in zkEVM ecosystem interactions" to "closing risk exposure and considering which Polygon chain should be the next focus."
Asset Countdown: Differences Between EOA and DeFi Risk
As Polygon zkEVM enters its sunset phase, the statement "there are assets on-chain" splits into two entirely different fates: one type is the balance held in one's own EOA wallet, and the other type consists of "forgotten chips" left in various DeFi protocols and smart contracts. The former has a clear, official exit pointed out repeatedly, while the latter faces a heightened "liquidation countdown" before the timeline of July 1, 2026. From the perspective of an airdrop radar, continuing to stay on zkEVM to do any tasks at this moment is less important than first clarifying which type of asset remains exposed on this soon-to-be-shut-down chain.
The EOA wallet balance is the relatively "controllable" part in the official planning. Polygon has clearly indicated that on-chain wallet assets need to be migrated out to the Ethereum mainnet through the official bridging interface at ui.agglayer.dev before July 1, 2026. The use of AggLayer related domains reflects the overall architectural upgrade Polygon is promoting, but for ordinary users, the more direct implication is: as long as the assets are still held in the wallet address controlled by one's private key, there remains an orderly withdrawal along this official bridge with about two weeks left until the shutdown (as of June 15, 2026), avoiding being trapped on an "old chain that is technically still existent but practically unable to interact smoothly" after the sequencer stalls.
The real dilemma lies with the other side — those assets locked in DeFi protocols or other smart contracts. Officials and media have repeatedly emphasized in the past year that this type of asset will not be "automatically packaged" for migration like EOA balances; users must manually extract these before July 1, 2026, and leave Polygon zkEVM through the official bridging interface; otherwise, once the deadline passes, these contract assets could face permanent loss of funds due to the inability to execute withdrawal logic normally. In the account view of the airdrop radar, this means that the zkEVM lead has completely switched from "who still wants to interact to earn subsequent incentives" to "who has a balance forgotten in the contract that needs to be reclaimed," and whether this risk exposure can be cleared within two weeks is the real question each participant needs to answer.
From zkEVM to AggLayer
If we view Polygon zkEVM Mainnet Beta as an "experimental production line," then the timeline announced in June 2025 and officially shutting down on July 1, 2026, has already written a migration curve from the old architecture to the new narrative. Now the official requirements for users to complete asset bridging through ui.agglayer.dev directly place the question of "how to safely exit" into the entrance of Polygon's new generation architecture. Coupled with the fact that this shutdown only targets zkEVM Mainnet Beta, while other networks like Polygon PoS and Polygon CDK remain unaffected, it becomes clear that what is sunsetted is a test-like production network, not the entire Polygon ecosystem; the spotlight quietly shifts toward a new map centered around AggLayer.
From the perspective of airdrop narratives, the sunset phase of this old chain signifies that the ecological story and potential incentive expectations built around zkEVM are orderly exiting the center stage. Projects that had previously laid out on zkEVM have either migrated to other Polygon chains or arranged for their own shutdown and withdrawal. For airdrop radar users, the zkEVM card that was originally seen as "having the opportunity for long-term farming" now more represents a risk liquidation clue. Correspondingly, in the selection view of the Polygon track, the focus will naturally shift: on one end is Polygon PoS, accommodating mainstream liquidity and applications, while on the other are new networks and cross-chain entrances that emerge around Polygon CDK and AggLayer. In the future, whoever can present clearer task paths and incentive arrangements will have a greater opportunity to take over the imaginative space left by zkEVM, which will become a core variable continuously tracked by airdrop radars in the Polygon landscape.
Rearranging Polygon Clues on the Airdrop Radar
After Polygon zkEVM enters its "sunset" stage, the significance of this chain on the airdrop radar has quietly changed. Over the past year, many people treated the zkEVM card as a "to-do list": completing interactions, tasks, and points, anticipating a unified settlement of chips at some point. Now that officials have confirmed a shutdown of Polygon zkEVM Mainnet Beta on July 1, 2026, with only about two weeks left for buffer, these interaction records feel more like a soon-to-be-sealed "report card" — it is still part of your participation in the Polygon story, but it has become difficult to interpret it as ongoing airdrop chips.
This also forces an overall rearrangement of the airdrop logic in the Polygon track. AiCoin data shows that in the Polygon section of the airdrop radar, user focus is shifting from "whether there are missed old zkEVM clues" to "on which new architecture the next batch of incremental opportunities will be built." Polygon PoS still accommodates mainstream assets and applications, while Polygon CDK and the new chains around AggLayer reserve space for future incentives and tasks; what the airdrop radar needs to do is no longer encourage everyone to go back and make up for zkEVM, but to help users quickly shift their focus to these still active networks that may undertake new plans.
In terms of specific presentation, the airdrop radar will label zkEVM projects more "finality"-oriented: the project card's status will primarily reflect "historical/closed," prominently marking the shutdown date of July 1, 2026, and adding asset migration risk alerts, rather than offering any new task expectations. Especially for users who still have assets left on-chain or still settled in DeFi contracts, the airdrop radar will emphasize the need to prioritize "safely taking the money away," while combining the official requirement to bridge through ui.agglayer.dev and media hints about the risk of permanent loss of funds for failing to migrate in time. Ultimately, whether the Polygon clues can smoothly transition from clearing old accounts to capturing the new stack's dividends on the airdrop radar will determine if this track is still worthy of long-term monitoring for users.
Exit Options for Developers and Ecological Projects
For many teams that have already placed their main product focus on zkEVM, today's timeline is not a simple technical upgrade but a forcibly accelerated "withdrawal campaign." Polygon Labs threw out a sunset timetable in June 2025, seemingly giving the ecosystem a year of buffer time, but when sequencer plans to shut down on July 1, 2026, and only two weeks remain, the balance becomes a reality: whether to bet limited energy on contract migration and new chain deployment, or prioritize organizing users to proactively extract assets from DeFi protocols and various smart contracts, ensuring completion of migration through ui.agglayer.dev before the deadline while maintaining community sentiment and trust. The fact that locked-up assets cannot be migrated automatically and may face permanent loss if they expire forces project parties to stand in the same trench as users, clearing technical debts while engaging in the most tedious but crucial communication and reminders.
What’s trickier is that many activities and incentives hanging on zkEVM were originally designed around future development expectations but are now abruptly cut off in the timeline. Some planned points, interactive activities, or community tasks must prematurely be given a full stop or be transferred and restarted on other chains like Polygon PoS and CDK. Whether to continue using historical behavior on zkEVM as reference has turned into a cycle of strategic choices made by the project itself. From the perspective of the airdrop radar, the same project's card may undergo a series of status changes in a short time, experiencing "original chain task halting — migration announcement appearing — new chain tasks going live", and whether historical interactions are recognized can no longer be simply summarized by a linear narrative like "one chain, one clue."
For airdrop radar users, the real thing to keep a close eye on this stage is not the expectation that "I used to interact on zkEVM, so there will definitely be compensation in the future," but whether the project team has provided a sufficiently clear narrative for migration and compensation — if users are clearly reminded to complete asset extraction and bridging before July 1, 2026, how to handle old users who failed to exit on time, and whether the continuity rules of zkEVM's historical behavior on the new chain are transparent and consistent. Whether they can deliver a clear and responsible migration answer sheet during this exit will become one of the most important references for the airdrop radar in selecting the next round of opportunities in the Polygon ecosystem.
The Last Two Weeks: Opportunity Liquidation and Risk Conclusion
From June 15 to July 1, these two weeks for old users of Polygon zkEVM feel more like a "risk liquidation" rather than continuing to bet on "incremental games." After this chain enters its sunset phase, the primary question from the perspective of the airdrop radar is no longer "can I extract something more," but rather "is there anything not withdrawn yet?" Polygon Labs has clarified it will shut down zkEVM Mainnet Beta on July 1, 2026, and cease related services; various media have repeatedly reminded users: if on-chain assets, especially funds locked in DeFi contracts or other smart contracts, are not withdrawn and bridged away from zkEVM via ui.agglayer.dev before the deadline, there exists the risk of permanent loss of funds. For airdrop radar users, this means that the first step is to thoroughly inventory whether there is remaining wallet balance, staked positions, or protocol positions on zkEVM, confirming asset security, with the second step being to calmly assess whether existing interaction records still hold potential reference value under Polygon's new architecture, rather than continuing to add new trial and error costs in the last two weeks.
Looking ahead, the shutdown of Polygon zkEVM does not signify the end of the entire Polygon narrative; rather, it shifts the focus towards Polygon PoS, Polygon CDK, and the new round of architectural upgrades centered around AggLayer. Other Polygon networks continue to operate normally, and future ecological projects’ task designs, incentive policies, and potential airdrops are more likely to unfold on these still-evolving chains. When the airdrop radar updates its observation list, it will also gradually shift the weight from "how to clean up risks in the zkEVM exit" to "which new networks and protocols take on incremental narratives within the Polygon ecosystem," while also reassessing the participation priorities of the Polygon ecosystem in the next incentive cycle based on official migration arrangements and communication performance during this sunset process.
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