Vitalik Buterin Outlines Usability and Decentralization as Ethereum’s Core Tests

• Ethereum’s 2025 upgrades improved speed and reliability but did not complete its broader mission.
• Buterin rejects short-term crypto trends, emphasizing durable and censorship-resistant applications.
• Global usability and true decentralization must advance together for Ethereum to act as a world computer.

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has used a New Year’s message to restate the conditions he believes the network must satisfy to achieve its original ambition of functioning as a “world computer.” While acknowledging the major technical advances made over the past year, Buterin argued that Ethereum’s long-term relevance depends on progress in usability and decentralization, rather than aligning with short-term market narratives.

In a post published on X, Buterin said Ethereum recorded major improvements in 2025, particularly in performance and reliability. According to his remarks, recent upgrades have allowed the network to handle higher levels of activity while preserving its decentralized structure. He also highlighted progress in reducing operational friction, including changes that make it easier for participants to run Ethereum software and maintain the network.

These developments, he said, collectively move Ethereum closer to operating as a shared computing platform rather than a narrowly defined blockchain system.

Technical Progress and Its Limits

Despite these gains, Buterin pointed out that technical targets alone do not fulfill Ethereum’s stated objectives. He warned against efforts focused on “winning the next meta,” referencing trends such as tokenized fiat assets, political meme tokens, or activity designed primarily to signal economic growth. In his view, these approaches risk distracting from Ethereum’s foundational purpose.

Instead, he reiterated a long-standing framework that prioritizes durability and neutrality. Central to this framework is what he described as the “walkaway test,” a standard under which applications should continue to operate even if their original developers or maintainers are no longer involved. He also stressed resilience, noting that users should not experience disruptions if major service providers fail or are compromised.

Usability and Decentralization as Joint Requirements

Buterin argued that Ethereum must meet two conditions at the same time: it must be usable at a global scale, and it must remain genuinely decentralized. He applied this standard not only to the core blockchain, including node software and user interfaces, but also to applications built on top of the network.

While many decentralized applications rely on Ethereum’s protocols, Buterin noted that some still depend on centralized infrastructure. He suggested this reliance remains a gap between Ethereum’s technical design and its practical deployment.

According to Buterin, recent technical work should be understood as preparation rather than completion. He stated that the purpose of scaling and reliability improvements is to support long-term use cases such as finance, identity, and governance, where systems must function without censorship or centralized control.