Vitalik Buterin calls for bolder experimentation in Ethereum's app layer while preserving core principles

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin is urging developers to rethink how applications are built on the network, calling for a more experimental mindset while maintaining the protocol’s core security guarantees.

In a lengthy post on X, Buterin stated that the Ethereum ecosystem should maintain a firm commitment to censorship resistance, open-source development, privacy, and security — principles he grouped under the acronym "CROPS."

At the same time, he argued that builders should feel freer to challenge long-standing assumptions about how decentralized applications are designed.

"We should not compromise on core properties," Buterin wrote. "But especially on the layer of applications and Ethereum’s interface to the world, we should be more willing to radically rethink various concepts and step outside our comfort zone."

His comments focused largely on the application layer, where he believes Ethereum’s next wave of innovation could emerge.

Rethinking Ethereum's app layer

One area he particularly highlighted was privacy. Treating privacy as a first-class feature of the ecosystem, he said, would require rebuilding much of Ethereum’s current application stack, which was not originally designed with privacy at its core.

Buterin also suggested that decentralized finance could evolve toward more generalized financial infrastructure. In one example, he floated the possibility that much of DeFi might eventually resemble universal futures markets built on top of decentralized oracle systems, allowing users to organize financial activity around a smaller set of foundational primitives.

He also pointed to potential new models for oracle design. One concept he raised involved generating verifiable data feeds by combining cryptographic proofs with outputs from multiple large language models and trusted data sources.

Moreover, Buterin suggested that artificial intelligence could also reshape how users interact with blockchain applications more broadly. In his view, integrating more AI features could potentially reduce the need for traditional wallet interfaces and discrete apps in favor of more fluid user interactions.

The OG blockchain developer also encouraged builders to reexamine the role of Layer 2 networks to ensure they stay genuinely additive to Ethereum’s core infrastructure rather than simply replicating functionality elsewhere.

Beyond technology, Ethereum’s culture should remain open to experimentation rather than drifting toward institutional conformity, Buterin urged. Referencing meme-driven communities such as Milady, he encouraged the ecosystem to resist becoming overly focused on "respectability" at the expense of creativity and new ideas.

Buterin’s larger vision

The remarks form part of a broader stream of public proposals and commentary from Buterin outlining possible directions for Ethereum’s future.

In recent weeks, he has pushed developers to build "sanctuary tech" rather than emulate large tech firms, proposed mechanisms such as encrypted mempools and "big FOCIL" to reduce centralization in block building, and outlined a two-part plan to overhaul Ethereum’s execution layer architecture.

He has also emphasized a return to cypherpunk design principles as developers expand Ethereum’s roadmap. More recently, Buterin has explored how Ethereum might function within an increasingly AI-driven technological landscape, sketching out a near-term vision for the network’s role in a future shaped by artificial intelligence.