Vitalik Buterin Backs Layer 2 Projects Stage 1 and Up

Draft Title: "Vitalik Buterin Expresses Stance on the Decentralization of Layer-2 Development"

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As you may already know, recently, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin made it clear that he will only recognize Layer-2 projects that have achieved "Stage 1" or higher in terms of decentralization. Layer-2 solutions are technologies designed to improve the scalability and performance of blockchains, specifically rollups, which bundle multiple transactions together, submitting them as a single transaction to the Ethereum main chain to increase transaction speed and reduce fees.

Buterin emphasized the importance of decentralization, stating that he would only officially mention Layer-2 networks that meet certain conditions. He explained the development stages of Layer-2 projects in three stages: "Stage 0," "Stage 1," and "Stage 2."

The first stage, "Stage 0," is referred to as the "complete training wheels" phase, where the system is controlled by simple multisig wallets. In this stage, users can process transactions or withdraw funds without operator intervention, but no fraud proof or validation proof is required.

The second stage, "Stage 1," is the minimum level of decentralization acknowledged by Buterin. This stage requires an active fraud proof or validity proof schema. Additionally, there should be a multi-signature based override mechanism or a "security council," which must be a group outside of the rollup organization. There should also be a 7-day delay window for upgrades.

The final stage, "Stage 2," is the "no training wheels" phase, where no group can override the code output if the code operates without bugs. Also, the use of a security council is limited to clear bug cases, and the upgrade activation delay is set to 30 days.

Buterin mentioned that many zero-knowledge rollup teams are expected to achieve "Stage 1" by the end of this year, expressing his anticipation for their progress. Currently, most rollups are controlled by multiple signatures, but cryptographic trust is expected to become more crucial in the future.

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