diff --git a/package.json b/package.json
index c2684552ed1..1e73870611e 100644
--- a/package.json
+++ b/package.json
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 {
     "name": "matrix-js-sdk",
-    "version": "34.5.0",
+    "version": "34.6.0-rc.0",
     "description": "Matrix Client-Server SDK for Javascript",
     "engines": {
         "node": ">=20.0.0"