Vitalik Buterin Advocates for Ethereum Simplification Inspired by Bitcoin

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has called for a significant simplification of the Ethereum protocol, aiming to make it as straightforward as Bitcoin within the next five years. In a recent blog post, Buterin emphasized the need to reduce complexity in Ethereum's architecture to enhance efficiency, security, and accessibility.

Key Takeaways

• Buterin proposes a transition from the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) to a simpler architecture, RISC-V.

• The simplification aims to improve performance by up to 100 times while maintaining backward compatibility.

• A new consensus layer is suggested to streamline operations and reduce technical debt.

• The initiative seeks to preserve Ethereum's core values of decentralization and openness.

The Case for Simplification

In his blog post titled "Simplifying the L1," Buterin highlighted the beauty of Bitcoin's simplicity, which he believes is crucial for its role as a globally trusted base layer. He noted that Ethereum has strayed from this simplicity, leading to increased technical complexity and development costs. Buterin stated, "Caring about simplicity is, like decentralization, a short-term cost for the sake of benefits that do not appear immediately. But in the long term, it will be worth it."

Proposed Changes to Ethereum

Buterin's proposal includes several key changes aimed at simplifying Ethereum's architecture:

1. Transition to RISC-V: The EVM, which has become bloated and complex, would be replaced with RISC-V, an open-source instruction set architecture. This change is expected to enhance performance and make the protocol easier to understand and implement.

2. Decoupling Consensus and Execution: By separating the consensus layer from execution logic, Ethereum can reduce its responsibilities and streamline operations. This would allow for independent upgrades and a leaner protocol surface, minimizing attack vectors and improving security.

3. Simplified Consensus Layer: Buterin proposes a new consensus model that eliminates unnecessary complexities, making it easier to implement and maintain. This model aims to enhance security and efficiency while reducing the number of active validators at any given time.

4. Standardization of Protocols: To further reduce complexity, Buterin advocates for the adoption of unified standards across the protocol, including a single erasure coding method and serialization format.

Benefits of a Leaner Protocol

The proposed simplifications are expected to yield several benefits:

• Increased Participation: A simpler protocol will lower the barrier to entry for developers and researchers, encouraging broader participation in protocol development.

• Reduced Risk of Bugs: A streamlined codebase will make it easier to audit and maintain, decreasing the likelihood of hidden bugs and security vulnerabilities.

• Enhanced Scalability: By offloading heavy computation to specialized Layer 2 networks, Ethereum can significantly increase transaction throughput without compromising security.

Community Response and Challenges

While Buterin's vision has garnered excitement within the Ethereum community, it also faces challenges. The transition to a new architecture may require significant developer retraining and could disrupt existing applications. Additionally, achieving consensus among the diverse stakeholders in the Ethereum ecosystem presents a formidable coordination challenge.

Despite these hurdles, many in the community believe that simplifying Ethereum is essential for its long-term success and competitiveness against other blockchain networks. As Ethereum continues to evolve, Buterin's call for a return to simplicity may pave the way for a more robust and accessible platform for decentralized applications and finance.

Sources

• Vitalik Wants To Speed Up Ethereum By 100x, Make it as 'Simple as Bitcoin', Decrypt.

• Vitalik Buterin Wants Ethereum To Be As Simple As Bitcoin In Five Years, 99Bitcoins.

• Vitalik Buterin Proposes SimpleL1: A New Direction for Ethereum, CryptoNinjas.

• Vitalik wants to make Ethereum ‘as simple as Bitcoin’ in 5 years, Cointelegraph.

• Vitalik Buterin Warns Ethereum Has Become Needlessly Complex, Calls for Mass Simplification of Chain, The Daily Hodl.