Buterin Urges Musk: Steer X Away from Rising Anti-EU Sentiments

Vitalik Buterin just threw a public curveball at Elon Musk—and it's not about crypto this time.

The Ethereum founder's latest move? A direct call for Musk to rein in anti-European Union rhetoric on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. Buterin's warning lands as political tensions flare and regulatory scrutiny intensifies.

Why This Matters for Tech

It's a classic power play. Buterin, representing the decentralized ethos of Web3, is publicly challenging the world's most influential tech baron on content moderation—a core governance issue. This isn't just about politics; it's a live test of platform accountability at a massive scale.

The Stakes for Digital Finance

For crypto insiders, the subtext is clear. The EU has emerged as a critical—if sometimes frustrating—regulatory frontier with its landmark MiCA framework. Alienating Brussels isn't just bad PR; it's a potential roadblock for the very financial innovation X's payment ambitions might need. After all, nothing derails a moonshot like a regulator with a fine-print fetish.

Buterin's intervention signals a strategic pivot: tech leaders can't afford to ignore geopolitical currents. In the high-stakes game of platform governance, picking fights with one of your largest regulatory neighbors is a move only someone with a truly galactic disregard for earthly consequences—or a very cynical view of engagement metrics—would make.

Buterin urges Musk to steer platform away from hate campaigns

The ethereum Foundation founder expanded on his concerns in a follow-up post, warning that anti-European sentiment felt more orchestrated than organic. 

“I don’t believe the line that ‘the target is not Europe, it’s the EU’: I’ve seen many instances of London specifically being targeted in the hate session, so no, much of it is an attack on Europe. It just does not match my experience from spending an average of two months every year there for the last decade.”

He then addressed Musk directly, cautioning that the platform could damage global support for free expression, and asking the CEO to “consider transforming X into a global totem pole for Free Speech.” 

“This is actually harmful for the cause of free speech. I’m seriously worried that huge backlashes against values I hold dear are coming in a few years’ time,” he continued.

yeah basically

A lot of powerful people really like the vision that the world should just be 5-20 adults who have their spheres and sometimes get together in a room to hash out any differences, and everyone else can be shut out because they are annoying and inconvenient.

— vitalik.eth (@VitalikButerin) December 9, 2025

An X user posed an inquiry to him, insinuating the Ether developer was silently advocating for censorship on the social platform, asking: “Are you suggesting that Twitter should censor (either direct or shadow) speech that you dislike? If not, what action are you hinting Elon should take exactly? ” 

Buterin dismissed the claims, propounding that there were algorithmic adjustments in place already changing user experience on the platform, and Musk was extending his influence through those tools.

“He’s clearly actively tweaking algorithms to boost some things and deboost other things based on pretty arbitrary criteria. As long as that power lever exists, I’d prefer it be used (without increasing its scope) to boost niceness instead of boosting ragebait,” he explained.

EU insists fines are for transparency, not to deter free speech

In a statement published by the European Commission last Friday, the EU insisted the fine against X is a routine legal requirement and has nothing to do with censorship or what speech can appear on the platform.

According to officials familiar with the investigation, there are three charges facing the company. One concerns the handling of verification and the platform’s blue checkmark system, which was opened to paid subscribers after Musk took over.

The other two charges cover transparency, including access to data needed for independent research, and another concerning the platform’s failure to submit clear advertising records. 

In findings released as part of the case, the Commission said X misled users by monetizing verification in a way that made it difficult to distinguish legitimate accounts from impersonators. 

It also alleged the company blocked outside researchers from studying harmful content and misinformation by restricting access to public data, charging high fees for limited API use, and declining to host a searchable, dependable database of political ads.

Telegram founder and French “enemy” Pavel Durov accused the EU of using regulation to coerce platforms into quiet censorship. Durov said the bloc imposed “impossible rules” so it could punish companies that refused to remove certain content without public scrutiny. 

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