Prior to the Merge, Ethereum was based on proof-of-work, in which computers all over the globe competed to solve problems in order to add a new block to the chain. Because all of these miners were striving to solve the riddle at the same moment, but only one could win, all other energy was squandered. Validators in proof of stake, on the other hand, have put up their Ethereum as collateral. They will lose the Ethereum they staked if they misbehave.
According to the Ethereum Foundation, the conversion will save more than 99 percent on energy expenditures. Since 2017, the Merge has been continuously postponed, prompting jokes that it is vaporware. Until it delivers, everything is vaporware.
