Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin recently posted an extensive message on social platform X, calling on the Ethereum community to pursue bolder innovation and reimagining at the application layer, while maintaining core principles. He emphasized that Ethereum’s foundational security and values must remain unchanged, but developers should be more daring to break through existing frameworks in applications and culture.
Vitalik believes that as AI, privacy technologies, and Layer 2 ecosystems develop rapidly, Ethereum should rethink its application designs for the next decade. He even proposed a thought experiment: if Ethereum currently had “no users,” how would developers rewrite the application chapter of the 2014 white paper today?
Vitalik: The Core Principles of Ethereum—CROPS—Must Remain Unshaken
Before discussing innovation, Vitalik stressed that Ethereum must uphold its core fundamentals. He summarized these core values as CROPS, including:
Censorship Resistance
Open Source
Privacy
Security
He pointed out that the community can stay open-minded in application and product design, but this openness should not undermine the security and trust model of Layer 1. For example, he highlighted the importance of light clients in trustless verification and warned against questioning these core mechanisms, as doing so could weaken market confidence in Ethereum’s long-term security.
In other words, Vitalik sees the base layer of Ethereum as needing to remain highly stable and reliable—this is the prerequisite for the entire ecosystem’s sustainable development.
Application Layer Needs a More Radical Experimental Spirit
Compared to the conservative stance of the base layer, Vitalik believes the application layer should be more disruptive and experimental.
He wrote in his post: “We should be more willing to rethink many concepts and step out of our comfort zones.”
This rethinking involves not only technical issues but also product design and user experience. For instance, Vitalik proposed a bold hypothesis: traditional browser wallets and mobile wallet extensions might become obsolete within a year.
With AI technology advancing rapidly, future crypto user experiences may no longer be about “opening an app,” but rather involve continuous AI agents acting on behalf of users to perform tasks, creating self-organizing interaction patterns. This suggests that user interaction with blockchain could shift from discrete applications to persistent intelligent agents.
DeFi Could Evolve into a “Universal Futures Market”
In financial applications, Vitalik also proposed a provocative idea: DeFi could be redesigned as a universal futures market.
Under this framework, market participants would no longer rely on numerous complex protocols but instead build self-organizing markets around a few basic primitives. The core of these markets would be highly reliable decentralized oracles.
Vitalik further speculated that an ideal oracle system might incorporate multiple new technologies, such as:
Using SNARK proofs to verify data
Aggregating outputs from multiple small language models (LLMs)
Using zk-TLS to obtain trusted information from mainstream news sites
This architecture could decentralize information sources while maintaining verifiability and resistance to manipulation.
Reevaluating Layer 2: Which Designs Truly Create Synergy for Ethereum?
Layer 2 scaling solutions have been a major focus of Ethereum development in recent years, but Vitalik suggests the community should revisit their design.
He posed the question: which Layer 2 solutions truly generate synergy for Ethereum, and which are just repeating existing patterns?
As rollups, ecosystem interoperability, and cross-chain technologies mature, Vitalik encourages developers to rethink the role of Layer 2 within the overall architecture, rather than simply following established technical routes.
Privacy Will Become a Core Element of Next-Generation Application Stacks
Another key point Vitalik emphasized is the rising importance of privacy technologies.
He believes privacy should not be just an add-on but a core element of blockchain design, on par with security. With progress from the Ethereum Foundation and external teams in privacy networks and zero-knowledge tech, a new set of application stacks supporting genuine privacy protection may be needed in the future.
This shift could impact the design of identity systems, social applications, and financial protocols.
Milady Meme and “Cultural Layer Innovation”
Interestingly, Buterin also linked technological innovation with cultural factors, mentioning the well-known Milady meme community.
He admitted that some political comments within the Milady community can seem “awkward or contradictory,” but he appreciates the spirit behind it: rejecting excessive formality and the constraints of “decency,” thereby unleashing creativity.
Buterin used a metaphor: like spilling red wine on a suit at a formal event, forcing oneself to abandon overly cautious appearances and embracing freer creative expression.
He believes this mental breakthrough can lead to a “spiritual cleansing,” expanding the scope of innovation.
Rewriting the Application Chapter of the 2014 White Paper
At the end of the article, Vitalik proposed a thought-provoking framework.
He suggested that Ethereum developers temporarily ignore past path dependencies and imagine a scenario where there are no existing on-chain applications, starting from zero:
How should DeFi be designed?
How would decentralized social applications operate?
How should identity systems be built?
In other words, developers should attempt to “rewrite” the application section of the 2014 Ethereum white paper and ask themselves: in the environment of 2026, which designs are truly reasonable?
Community Discussions: Will Ethereum Enter the Next Phase?
Vitalik’s post quickly sparked lively discussion within the Ethereum community. Some supported this rethinking, believing Ethereum needs to leap beyond incremental innovation; others used the opportunity to promote their own technical solutions, especially projects related to identity protocols.
Some community members responded with memes, adding a lighthearted atmosphere to the discussion.
The timing of this message is also significant. By 2026, Ethereum is expected to undergo multiple transformations, including mature scaling solutions, privacy tools, and integration of AI agents with blockchain.
While maintaining core principles, Vitalik’s call may be an attempt to open up broader imagination for Ethereum’s next development stage.
This article, Vitalik Calls for Rethinking Ethereum Application Layer: How Would You Rewrite the White Paper if There Were No Users, first appeared on Chain News ABMedia.
