The recent result of the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) in combination with other cosmological data shows evidence of the evolving dark energy parametrized by the $w_0{w}_a\mathrm{CDM}$ model. We interpret this result in terms of a quintessential scalar field and demonstrate that it can explain the DESI result even though it becomes eventually phantom in the past. Relaxing the assumption on the functional form of the equation-of-state parameter $w=w(a)$, we also discuss a more realistic quintessential model. The implications of the DESI result for Swampland conjectures, cosmic birefringence, and the fate of the Universe are discussed as well.

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• Axions
• Cosmic microwave background
• Dark energy
• Quantum gravity