Vitalik Buterin’s 2026 Manifesto: Ethereum Must Chase Vision, Not Hype

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin just dropped a bombshell directive for the network's 2026 roadmap: ditch the short-term frenzy, double down on the long game.

The Core vs. The Noise

Buterin's call isn't about ignoring market dynamics—it's a strategic pivot. The push centers on foundational upgrades: scaling solutions that actually work for billions, ironclad security protocols, and radical decentralization that makes the network truly censorship-resistant. It's the unsexy, heavy-lifting engineering that doesn't always pump the price on Twitter.

Building the Next Decade's Infrastructure

This means prioritizing research and development that might not yield a token airdrop next quarter. Think years, not weeks. The focus shifts to sustainability, user experience for the next hundred million users, and ensuring Ethereum remains the settlement layer for everything—even if some shiny new L1 promises faster, cheaper transactions today. A subtle jab at the 'move fast and break things' crowd chasing quarterly returns for their VC backers.

The Bottom Line for 2026

Buterin's vision is a gamble on substance over spectacle. In a landscape crowded with projects promising the moon, Ethereum is being told to build the rocket—methodically, securely, and with an eye on the next decade, not the next hype cycle. It's a bet that true, enduring value isn't found in chasing trends, but in building the infrastructure that defines them. After all, the most profitable trade in crypto is often just patience.

Ethereum’s Vision Beyond Hype and Third-party Dependence

Buterin acknowledged Ethereum’s 2025 achievements, including increased gas limits, expanded blob counts, and improved node software quality.

“zkEVMs blasted through their performance milestones, and with zkEVMs and PeerDAS, Ethereum made its largest step toward being a fundamentally new and more powerful kind of blockchain,” he said.

Vitalik also insisted that these technical gains must now translate into applications that operate without fraud, censorship, or third-party interference.

The Ethereum founder emphasized that instead of chasing the next crypto meta in 2026, the Ethereum community needs to stay on the long-term vision.

“To build the world computer that serves as a central infrastructure piece of a freer and open internet.”

According to him, the Ethereum team is building decentralized applications that run without fraud, censorship, or third-party interference.

Applications that pass the walkaway test: they keep running even if the original developers disappear.

Applications where if you’re a user, you don’t even notice “if Cloudflare goes down – or even if all of,” he explained, painting a picture of platforms whose stability transcends companies, ideologies, and political parties.

An Ethereum developer from zCloak Network challenged this vision, questioning how the network can eliminate Cloudflare reliance while still depending on centralized RPC services for regular users.

I don't think you can get rid of Cloudflare as long as Ethereum still needs centralized RPC service for regular users.

Buterin countered that Ethereum represents a rebellion against centralized control, noting that the shift toward dependence has been recent.

“A generation ago, any wallet, kitchen appliance, book, or car WOULD fulfill every single one of them.”

Today, all of the above are by default becoming subscription services, “consigning you to permanent dependence on some centralized overlord,” he stated, emphasizing how Ethereum aims to restore the autonomy once standard in everyday technology.

Vitalik Addressed Ethereum Scalability Issues and Layer-2 Strategy

When a solana NFT collector asked why Ethereum relies heavily on Layer-2 solutions instead of optimizing a single high-performance base layer, Buterin defended the current approach.

He explained Ethereum is working on optimizing its base LAYER while ensuring the blockchain needs to be “usable, and usable at scale, and (ii) actually decentralized,” adding that “this needs to happen at both (a) the blockchain layer, including the software we use to run and talk to the blockchain, and (b) the application layer.”

Buterin conceded all components require further improvement, but expressed confidence in the path forward.

“Fortunately, we have powerful tools on our side – but we need to apply them, and we will,” the Ethereum co-founder concluded, showing determination to execute the long-term vision.

A Metalex developer praised Buterin’s continued commitment, writing, “I’m so grateful for you and Ethereum, Vitalik. It’s what brought me into crypto and what keeps me here.”

I'm so grateful for you and Ethereum, Vitalik. It's what brought me into crypto and what keeps me here. You could've cashed out and disappeared a long time ago but you are still fighting for cypherpunk values.

The developer noted Buterin could have cashed out years ago, but remains dedicated to cypherpunk values.

This New Year message follows Buterin’s recent December essay warning about concentrated power across governments and corporations, where he proposed mandatory technological diffusion as a counterbalance.

Earlier last year, on December 8, Buterin had suggested creating a trustless on-chain futures market for gas fees to bring predictability to Ethereum transaction costs as the network scales.