Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin is urging for more daring and open-minded experimentation at Ethereum’s application layer, while keeping its core principles intact.
In a lengthy post on X on March 5, Buterin expanded on his vision for Ethereum’s future. Following his earlier warning against the network devolving into a casino for memecoins and yield farming, he now calls on builders to adopt a “more bold and open mindset,” particularly regarding the application layer and Ethereum’s role in the world.
Buterin clarifies that this openness should not undermine confidence in the network’s security. He reiterates his previous concerns about Ethereum’s purpose beyond decentralized finance (DeFi), emphasizing that the project’s ethos is about using technological and financial tools to increase personal freedom.
“We should not compromise on core properties: censorship resistance, open source, privacy, security (CROPS),” he wrote. “We should not have ‘open mindedness’ of the type that leaves people with no confidence of what security properties the L1 will have one year from now.”
Rethinking Technology and Direction
Buterin first addresses what he calls “issues of technological direction.” He argues that when it comes to applications and how Ethereum interfaces with the world, the community must be “willing to radically rethink various concepts and step outside our comfort zone.”
He believes the entire application stack needs revisiting, as it “has not been built around privacy.” While Ethereum’s base layer is becoming a robust settlement engine, Buterin notes that layers built on top—such as L2s, wallets, DeFi, oracles, and future AI agents—often reintroduce the centralization risks Ethereum was designed to eliminate. He advocates for building radically new, AI-native, privacy-first applications that still respect the chain’s cryptographic guarantees.
A Critique of Culture
Buterin then critiques the short-term, casino-like culture he sees gaining traction on Ethereum. Using the example of the Milady NFT community, he points to a “hyper-online, irony-poisoned, degenerate, meme-driven speculation” vibe. For Buterin, Milady represents an environment where attention, aesthetics, and in-group memes take precedence over building practical tools for people facing capital controls, censorship, or economic hardship.
By invoking Milady, he questions whether Ethereum will continue optimizing for this kind of self-referential activity or finally deliver “sanctuary tech” that someone in a crisis could actually rely on.
“Yes, it’s a silly meme,” Buterin writes. “Yes, I find the political takes of some milady partisans cringe and sometimes outright bootlickerish… But the core underlying subtext, the message behind the message, is: rip off the suit and tie. If you have your suit and tie on, be willing to grab the nearest wine glass and spill it all over your suit and tie, so you have no choice but to rip it off and reclaim your body’s full flexibility and freedom.”
A Path Forward for Growth
In conclusion, Buterin states that Ethereum is now in a “solid position” with “amazing” achievements. He argues the goal should no longer be incremental improvement but to ask, “what are the most valuable things to build, knowing what we know now?”
Ethereum can only grow back stronger, Buterin says, if builders treat its base layer as a stable and secure foundation upon which to construct these bold, new, and meaningful applications.Public infrastructure should remain stable and reliable, while innovative experiments can be directed toward AI-native, privacy-focused apps and Layer 2 solutions that still benefit from Ethereum’s full security guarantees. On the daily chart, ETH’s price is showing a downward trend. Source: ETHUSD on Tradingview. Cover image generated by ChatGPT, ETHUSD chart sourced from Tradingview.
Frequently Asked Questions
FAQs Vitalik Buterins Call for More Ambitious Changes to Ethereum
BeginnerLevel Questions
1 Who is Vitalik Buterin and why does his opinion matter
Vitalik Buterin is the cofounder of Ethereum His opinion carries significant weight because he is a leading visionary and technical thinker who has shaped Ethereums development from the start
2 What does he mean by more ambitious changes for Ethereum
He means that the Ethereum development community should pursue bigger more fundamental upgrades to the networks core technologynot just small incremental improvementsto solve longterm challenges like scalability security and user experience
3 What are the main reasons hes calling for this greater boldness
He believes Ethereum faces strong competition from other blockchains and that resting on past successes is risky To stay ahead and fully realize its potential as a global decentralized computer it needs to innovate more aggressively
4 Isnt Ethereum already being upgraded regularly
Yes through a process called Ethereum Improvement Proposals However Buterin is advocating for changes that are more complex and transformative than typical upgrades requiring greater coordination and ambition
5 Whats a simple example of an ambitious change he might support
A major overhaul of how the Ethereum Virtual Machinethe engine that runs all smart contractsworks to make it vastly more efficient and capable
Intermediate Advanced Questions
6 What specific technical areas is he likely referring to
Key areas include
Scalability Going beyond current rollup solutions to achieve massive transaction throughput
Privacy Implementing builtin privacy features for transactions and smart contracts
Account Abstraction Making user accounts smarter and more secure moving away from the current private key model
Consensus Security Further refining the proofofstake mechanism to be more resilient and decentralized
7 What is the biggest risk of not being bold enough according to this view
The risk is technical stagnation Ethereum could become a legacy system that is secure but slow to evolve eventually being overtaken by more innovative nimble competitors that better meet user needs
8 What are the main challenges or obstacles to making these big changes