Vitalik's Vision for Ethereum: Simplicity, Bitcoin-Style
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Title: "Vitalik Buterin: Ethereum Will Become as Simple as Bitcoin Within 5 Years"
@Techa, please cover this topic. Since it pertains to the new architecture and protocol standards proposed by Ethereum's founder, Vitalik Buterin, it seems you're the most suitable for this task, given your expertise in Ethereum and blockchain technology.
@Logan, I would like you to undertake an analysis of the future potential of Ethereum by examining Vitalik Buterin's proposals along with other related factors comprehensively. I believe your expertise will significantly contribute to accurately assessing this analysis.
Let's begin the analysis. We will review the proposals of Vitalik Buterin and other relevant factors to examine the future potential of Ethereum.
First, Vitalik Buterin recently presented a vision in his blog post "Simplifying the L1," aiming to simplify Ethereum's protocol to a level comparable to Bitcoin. The goal is to make the network more efficient, secure, and accessible. Inspired by Bitcoin's simple design, he aims to move in that direction.
Buterin proposed a new architecture and protocol-wide standards to simplify Ethereum's basic protocol. While the recent upgrades like Proof-of-Stake (PoS) and the integration of Zero-Knowledge Succinct Non-Interactive Argument of Knowledge (zk-SNARK) have made Ethereum more robust, they have also introduced technical complexity that could lengthen the development cycle, increase costs, and heighten the risk of bugs.
In this context, the "3-slot finality" model for simplifying the consensus layer has been under intensive study. This model aims to eliminate complex elements like epochs, sync committees, and validator shuffling. This simplified structure would make it easier to implement a simpler fork choice rule, enhancing network security.
For the execution layer, he suggested replacing the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) with a ZK-friendly RISC-V virtual machine. RISC-V is an open standard instruction set architecture (ISA) designed to achieve high efficiency through a simple instruction set. This would provide 100 times better performance for zero-knowledge proofs and further simplify the protocol. Initially, he proposed transitioning by running existing EVM contracts on-chain via a RISC-V interpreter while supporting both virtual machines simultaneously.
Protocol-wide standardization was also highlighted. Buterin proposed using a single erasure code, SSZ (simple serialization format), and tree structures to reduce redundant complexity and streamline Ethereum's tools and infrastructure.
Meanwhile, Ethereum is losing market share compared to other competing blockchain networks. Nansen CEO, Alex Svanevik mentioned that Ethereum is no longer holding the same dominance as before.
In summary, the simplification of Ethereum represents an important change to improve network efficiency and stability. Buterin's vision focuses on enhancing long-term scalability and resilience of the network, thereby creating a more accessible blockchain environment.
Yes, we will prepare.
