During his anticipated speech at the EthCC in Cannes, Vitalik Buterin revisited the history and challenges of decentralization, emphasizing how blockchain technology, and particularly Ethereum, must evolve to stay true to its founding principles.
Buterin began by recalling how the original vision of web 1.0 was that of a free internet, where every user could be a publisher and owner of their own data, without intermediaries or central authorities.
This utopia, however, collided with reality: the advent of web 2.0 led to the emergence of the so-called “walled gardens,” closed platforms where a few players – grandi aziende tecnologiche – control access, data, and the rules of the game. The promises of openness and transparency have often turned into new mechanisms of control and surveillance, both by governments and corporations.
Vitalik Buterin: from technicality to social responsibility
Buterin cited the famous essay “The Moral Character of Cryptographic Work” by Philip Galizia, emphasizing how those working in the field of cryptography must take responsibility for the social implications of their creations. Technological optimism – the idea that technology automatically brings benefits – has often been disproven by facts: progress is never free, but the result of conscious choices and corrective actions.
The example of the fight against pollution in American cities, according to Buterin, demonstrates that technological improvements occur only when problems are recognized and active steps are taken to solve them. Applying this reasoning to the world of crypto, Buterin argues that the pioneering phase – where the main goal was to grow the space – is now over. Today, with blockchain adopted by large companies and prominent political figures, growth for its own sake is no longer an automatic good.
Decentralization: beyond the rhetoric
Buterin distinguishes between three levels of decentralization:
1. Level one: decentralization as a stated value, but not always realized in practice.
2. Level two: use of decentralized technologies, without however guaranteeing real freedom to users.
3. Level three: decentralization that results in actual freedom for the users.
The key question to ask, according to Buterin, is:
“Are we really making users more free?”
Many projects, despite using blockchain technologies, still fall into centralized models, where sudden updates or backdoors can compromise the security and autonomy of users.
Practical examples: interfaces, governance, identity, and privacy
Buterin provided several concrete examples of how decentralization can be betrayed in practice:
- Centralized interfaces: even if the backend is secure and decentralized, a web interface managed by a centralized server can become the weak point of the entire system.
- On-chain governance: token-based governance models can degenerate into voting auctions, favoring the concentration of power and undermining true democratic participation.
- Identity management: the use of zero-knowledge proofs can enhance privacy, but if the system enforces a single identity per person, there is a risk of exposing users to coercion and loss of confidentiality.
- Privacy: privacy should not be seen as an optional feature, but data loss as a real bug. Data breaches can occur both in writing and reading on the blockchain, and often the protocols are not sufficiently robust.
The fundamental tests for decentralization
One of the most important criteria proposed by Buterin is the walkaway test: if all the servers of a platform suddenly disappeared, would users still have access to their assets? Only systems that pass this test can truly be considered decentralized. Some wallets and applications, such as the privacy embedded wallet or the Farcaster client, allow users to export their keys and migrate freely, representing virtuous examples.
Security, trusted computing base, and incentives
Buterin invites reflection on how many points of vulnerability exist in a system: from the possibility of centralized updates, to manipulable oracles, to the number of truly reliable lines of code. Reducing the trusted computing base – that is, the amount of code that must be blindly trusted – is fundamental to increasing security.
Furthermore, Buterin emphasizes the importance of analyzing the game dynamics created by the protocols: even formally neutral systems can favor the concentration of power if not designed carefully. The example of Android and open source software shows how technical freedom does not automatically translate into real freedom for users, due to commercial practices and invasive preinstallations.
A call to action for the crypto community
Buterin concludes his speech with a call to the community: to build an ecosystem that is worthy of being passed down to future generations, capable of offering openness, freedom, privacy, and permissionless access. Only in this way can Ethereum and the blockchain avoid becoming just another passing trend or a tool in the hands of a few.
Finally, Buterin warns of the risks of social incentives and group dynamics that can lead even the most idealistic projects to transform into self-referential and closed entities. The challenge is to keep the original values alive, promoting open source, open standards, security, and censorship resistance.
Conclusion: decentralization as a process, not as a state
The speech by Vitalik Buterin in Cannes represents a moment of reflection for the entire sector. Decentralization is not a state to be achieved once and for all, but a continuous process that requires attention, self-criticism, and constant innovation. Only in this way can the blockchain fulfill the promise of a freer, safer, and fairer internet for everyone.
Source: https://en.cryptonomist.ch/2025/07/03/vitalik-buterin-ethereum-decentralization-and-the-future-of-the-blockchain/