Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin signaled on Sunday that the Ethereum Foundation is transitioning into a leaner, hyper-focused entity—dramatically narrowing its operational scope amid a period of internal turbulence.
“The [Ethereum Foundation] is choosing to use its remaining resources to pursue longevity over breadth,” Buterin explained, clarifying that the organization should be viewed as “one node, with a defined purpose, alongside other nodes,” rather than essential to Ethereum’s overall mission.
Buterin’s reflection comes amid a wave of departures from the organization that was established more than a decade ago to support protocol development, foster open-source research, and advocate for the Ethereum network under a nonprofit structure.
Under Bastian Aue, the Ethereum Foundation’s interim co-executive director, Buterin indicated that the organization is refocusing itself around CROPS, a framework rooted in censorship resistance, openness, privacy, and security. Focusing purely on Ethereum’s ability to facilitate fast and cheap transactions is “a route to mediocrity,” he added.
Buterin noted that the Ethereum Foundation currently controls around 0.16% of Ethereum’s total supply, a sum valued at $408 million. He added that the Ethereum Foundation debuted with clear-cut technical goals, which were completed in 2022, and the organization “was not designed to be an eternal steward” of the network.
Nonetheless, Buterin underscored his exposure. He said around 90% of his net worth is tied up in the second-largest digital asset by market capitalization, which briefly surpassed all-time highs last year. Buterin added that his “own power” within the Ethereum Foundation will “continue to decrease, which is honestly what I want.”
Buterin said Ethereum’s community should be focused on creating a provably bug-free environment using advancements in AI, preserving Ethereum’s unique consensus properties, and reducing a reliance on transaction middlemen.
