2026-01-18 08:31:20

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik recently spoke out, announcing that Ethereum will refocus on the two core pillars of sovereignty and trustlessness in 2026, no longer sacrificing fundamental principles in the fight for mainstream users.

He admitted that over the past decade, the Ethereum ecosystem has faced several thorny issues. First, the barriers to running nodes are becoming increasingly high, making it nearly impossible for ordinary users to independently verify on-chain data. Second, data leakage problems in the DApp ecosystem are becoming more severe, with a large amount of user privacy controlled by third parties. Even more seriously, wallets are gradually falling from local RPC to third-party service dependence, exposing user data completely. At the underlying level, the trend toward centralization in block construction is also intensifying, with a few builders controlling transaction ordering rights, affecting the inclusiveness and fairness for ordinary users.

This series of phenomena reflects a reality: in the pursuit of large-scale adoption, Ethereum has gradually deviated from its original promises of decentralization and resistance to censorship. Vitalik’s statement marks the Ethereum community’s readiness to adjust its direction, using 2026 as a key timeframe to start rebuilding a more resilient and decentralized ecosystem.

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BugBountyHunter

· 17h ago

We still have to wait until 2026, and now it's almost being drained by centralization.

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LiquidityLarry

· 01-20 15:16

Vitalik is really getting anxious this time. Where is the promised decentralization? Are you only realizing it now? Really? Only taking action in 2026, that feels a bit late. Both promises and corrections, can we fix the wallet issues first? Centralization is truly heartbreaking. The builder's monopoly on transaction ordering should have been addressed long ago. Talking without action, brother. Do you have a concrete plan or are you just waiting for community votes for another three months? Switching from夺users to守住原则? I think that's also a helpless move. Apologies are one thing, but what about the users who were exploited? High node thresholds are indeed a pain point; ordinary people can't play on the chain. Privacy leaks are even more frightening than centralization; data being sold without even knowing.

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ShamedApeSeller

· 01-18 08:56

Damn, someone finally told the truth. It should have been done this way a long time ago.

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MrDecoder

· 01-18 08:48

To be honest, this kind of rhetoric sounds a bit hollow... 2026? Another time window? It feels like every time they're just making empty promises.

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AlwaysQuestioning

· 01-18 08:45

It was about time to wake up; these years have indeed become more and more centralized. Wait, two more years until 2026? We should act now. Oh my, are you only realizing the problem now? Ordinary people have felt it long ago. Sounds good, but can it really be reversed? I’m a bit skeptical. Once you fall into the centralized trap, it’s not so easy to climb out. Another two-year plan... we said the same thing last year. Vitalik finally dares to tell the truth, which is a good sign. It sounds serious, but execution is the key. If the problem is identified correctly, I just worry that the plan will be just talk on paper. This is the path Ethereum should take. Thumbs up.

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MoonWaterDroplets

· 01-18 08:43

Damn, finally said it. We've should have reflected on this a long time ago. --- 2026? Feels like another delay, hopefully this time it's for real. --- Sounds good, but the question is who will execute it. --- Centralization is really disgusting; the wallet breach part hit the nerve. --- Now they're starting with grand narratives again. Can we first get the gas fees down? --- Isn't this just admitting that they've gone astray? Nice words, though. --- The privacy exposure part is truly shocking. I've wanted to say something but didn't dare.

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OnchainDetective

· 01-18 08:36

It was about time to wake up; things have indeed gone off track in recent years. Well said, returning to the original intention is the true way. 2026? Feels like it might be delayed again, haha. Finally, someone dares to tell the truth. But the issue of node thresholds hasn't been resolved after all these years. That was a good speech, but the key is whether it can be achieved. The trend toward centralization is obvious to everyone; repairs will take time.

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