- Vitalik Buterin highlights ongoing projects aligning with crypto’s early ideals, despite a shift towards financial interests.
- Farcaster, a social network on Optimism blockchain, secures $150 million, emphasizing decentralization and small user base.
Vitalik Buterin, co-founder of Ethereum, recently responded to observations about the evolving nature of the cryptocurrency culture. Amid perceptions of a shift towards purely financial and meme-driven interests, Buterin points to several initiatives that embody the original, idealistic goals of the cryptocurrency community.
His comments came in reaction to a post by Joe Weisenthal, host of Bloomberg’s “Odd Lots” podcast, who noted the significant cultural shift in crypto from its early, more idealistic days to its current state.
“Just thinking. It’s pretty crazy how much crypto culture has changed in the last 5-6. Bank then, you still had idealist hippies, talking about things like democracy on the blockchain, or UBIs, or open internet. Never hear about that anymore. Now 100% financial/meme coins stuff,” Weisenthal wrote.
Buterin identified several projects that maintain the ethos of decentralization and user empowerment, central to the early days of cryptocurrency. Among these is Farcaster, a social network protocol built on the Optimism blockchain.
We're still here! And a lot of that idealistic open internet stuff has actually moved forward quite a bit, eg. we have farcaster and lens, quadratic and retroactive funding, zupass, privacy-preserving ways to send ETH, ZK voting implementations…
— vitalik.eth (@VitalikButerin) June 19, 2024
Although it boasts a small user base, Farcaster has successfully secured $150 million in funding, emphasizing its potential and commitment to decentralization.
Another notable mention by Buterin is the Lens Protocol, a decentralized social network that enables users to retain ownership of their content. This project reflects a growing desire within the crypto space to ensure that users have control over their digital interactions and data.
Buterin also discussed the concept of quadratic funding, which uses quadratic voting principles to allocate community funds democratically. This method considers the preferences of a broader user base, aiming to fund projects in a way that aligns with the community’s collective interests.
The Gitcoin Grants Program is an example of this approach, providing quarterly funding to projects that demonstrate value and alignment with community goals.
Additionally, Buterin highlighted innovations like Zupass, a personal cryptocurrency management tool that enhances user privacy, and advancements in zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs) and zero-knowledge voting. These technologies offer privacy-preserving methods of transaction and voting, crucial for maintaining user anonymity and security on the blockchain.
Despite the surge in popularity of meme coins and financially focused crypto projects, Buterin’s insights reveal that the Ethereum community continues to pursue projects that are true to the foundational principles of cryptocurrency.Â
These include decentralization, privacy, and democratic engagement, demonstrating a commitment to not only advancing technology but also nurturing the community-oriented spirit that originally fueled the blockchain sector.
