From genius youth to being questioned, is the crypto market too harsh on Vitalik?

Vitalik has been absent from social media for more than 20 days. During this period, the price of Ethereum has repeatedly fallen below the psychological threshold for investors. On March 12, the ETH to BTC exchange rate fell to 0.022676, hitting a new low since June 2020. The ETH to BTC exchange rate continues to decline, with early large holders fleeing and retail investors panicking, amid a constant stream of negative commentary.

In February, a controversy erupted within the Ethereum community, with some hoping that Vitalik would pay attention to current industry hotspots. In response, Vitalik stated that he does not believe the currently popular competitive model is the best product for blockchain, and that he and Ethereum are committed to creating better products.

In the more than 20 days since Vitalik faded out of the network, executives from a certain trading platform have been playing memes on social media, leveraging investments from institutions to spark a wave of on-chain Meme enthusiasm.

In this cycle, Meme and gaming projects are booming, with fervent emotions filling the crypto community. In addition, a broader sense of confusion looms over the crypto space, as genuine innovations that could drive the industry’s growth seem to have vanished.

The industry is desolate, and Memes have become the mainstream narrative. People begin to reminisce about the summer of 2020 when DeFi was flourishing on Ethereum.

From "V God" to "Little V"

In the past, people referred to him as "V God" and regarded him as a spiritual leader who guided the direction of encryption development. Now, however, he is called "Little V" and told to "get out" of Ethereum.

Vitalik recently became the focus of public opinion in early February. At that time, there was a lot of skepticism about Ethereum within the community. Faced with various doubts, suggestions, and insults, Vitalik eventually responded on social media: he does not agree that the current competitive model is the best product; he is pursuing a better product. Regarding the calls for innovation from the Ethereum Foundation, Vitalik also expressed his helplessness towards the suggestions of those who do not understand the situation.

It was unimaginable two years ago that Vitalik would become the target of criticism.

Groups often long for powerful leaders, eagerly needing an object of worship to gain psychological support and guidance. This drives them to fervently create a deity, amplifying the virtues of a particular individual to shape an omnipotent "god". Once this constructed "god" fails to meet the overly high expectations of the public, the group's attitude shifts swiftly and brutally. They instantly transform from blind worship to fierce criticism, violently pushing the "god" off the pedestal, expressing their disappointment and anger through insults and slander.

Vitalik has fully experienced a process of being both idolized and vilified by the encryption community. In the past, Vitalik's statements and thoughts pointed the way for the industry within the crypto market. Vitalik was happy to express various ideas, such as the SBT and the concept of network states in earlier years, which he either proposed or strongly supported. Under his promotion, these new concepts once became hot topics in the industry, being pursued and practiced by many projects.

Especially during a bear market, major projects will strive to position themselves in tracks that may explode during a bull market. At that time, Vitalik was optimistic about Web3 social, and entrepreneurs flocked in, but after a brief surge during the bear market, everything returned to calm.

The bull market is coming, but the directions that Vitalik "pointed out" during the bear market have not seen a major outbreak at the application level. Chaos and confusion have become the feelings of most project teams.

Without true innovation and a new narrative that can uplift the industry, the grandeur of the DeFi Summer that once occurred on Ethereum has not been replicated.

The infrastructure of blockchain has been completed, but there seems to be a lack of products that can change human life or the world. The core issue in the blockchain industry today is no longer the infrastructure, but what substantial changes blockchain can bring to this world.

If the answer is payment, then Bitcoin provided it in 2008; if it is DeFi, then Ethereum showcased it in 2020. Currently, the most practical application in the crypto market can be said to be stablecoins, which are indeed changing the traditional world in areas such as cross-border payments.

In addition, is there any innovation in the blockchain industry? During this cycle, asset launch platforms on various chains have become popular, but this is merely an innovation in the way assets are issued, and essentially it is still a casino in new clothes. Another area of great attention is the blockchain AI track, which, although well-funded, has seen its bubble burst by emerging AI projects. The more prominent issue in this track is that the narrative主体 is still AI, with blockchain technology merely providing auxiliary functions such as on-chain identity and building economic systems, rather than being an encryption native track.

In this desolate land, gaming projects are regarded as the best products in the encryption industry. Faced with many advising Vitalik himself and Ethereum to engage more in these "casino" types of games, Vitalik refused, saying, "If I look into my heart, I will find something worth fighting for."

Vitalik once enjoyed the feeling of being put on a pedestal, and when he was brought down from it, people saw a side of him as an ordinary person. To some, this side appears stubborn, arrogant, and unwilling to listen to others' opinions. But it is precisely these traits that led him to create Ethereum.

The passion of childhood can change the world

Psychologists have said: "When you were a child, whatever made time fly and brought you joy, that answer is your pursuit in this world."

For Vitalik, the things worth fighting for have long been written in his childhood experiences. At the age of 4, he received a computer from his father. While other children played games, he became obsessed with Excel and soon was able to write automatic calculation programs with it; at 7, he created a "Rabbit Encyclopedia" document filled with charts and mathematical formulas, subsequently being recognized for his talents in mathematics and programming; by the age of 10, his mental calculation speed was more than double that of his peers; at 11, he began to study subjects such as mathematics, programming, and economics ahead of his age in a "Genius Class."

Programming technology itself brings happiness to Vitalik, and his pursuit is to change the world with technology. Compared to some speculators in the crypto market, he is relatively conservative.

In 2018, when Ethereum plummeted and faced doubts, Vitalik advised against letting Ethereum become a "tulip" for speculators. At that time, just as now, Vitalik also considered leaving Ethereum.

Every time the coin price is sluggish, doubts about Ethereum arise. In the face of the community's skepticism and insults, Vitalik always thinks about "leaving".

Vitalik has always adhered to his beliefs. His commitment to technology and vigilance against "bubbles" has never changed. It is precisely these steadfastness that has brought transformation and innovation to the crypto world.

Looking back at the history of encryption development, important innovations that have led the industry have mostly occurred on Ethereum, known as the "world computer," over the past decade: widespread adoption of smart contracts, providing a platform for innovative financial mechanisms such as DeFi, developing various Layer 2 solutions, and practicing DAO governance models, among others.

Nowadays, more and more large institutions are building Web3 applications and infrastructure solutions on Ethereum. The Ethereum ecosystem is in a mature leading position in terms of technical reserves, development team support, on-chain funding scale, and client security.

Vitalik not only realizes his technical ideals with Ethereum, but also places his social ideals upon it. The concepts he advocates, such as decentralization, resistance to censorship, and quadratic voting, relate to democratic practice, internet architecture, and both commercial and non-profit organizations. This has allowed his influence to extend beyond the crypto community.

The Future of Ethereum

Ethereum still has things to look forward to.

In April, Ethereum will welcome the launch of the Pectra upgrade on the mainnet. This upgrade integrates changes to both the execution layer and the consensus layer, introducing 11 key improvement proposals aimed at enhancing scalability, staking flexibility, and user experience. Overall, this upgrade will improve network performance and stability on a technical level; change the staking economic model on an economic level, affecting supply and demand relationships and market prices; and attract more developers and users on an application level, promoting innovation and development in decentralized applications.

In the United States, a stakable Ethereum spot ETF may be approved. In the first quarter of 2025, several asset management companies submitted applications for the proposed Ethereum spot ETF, planning to introduce staking features.

The Pectra upgrade is expected to shorten the Ethereum staking unbonding period, which could become a catalyst for the approval of staking ETFs.

It is widely believed in the industry that one major reason for the weak attractiveness of the current Ethereum spot ETF is the lack of staking functionality. After the staking feature is launched, ETF holders could receive an annualized return of 3-3.5%. This could significantly increase capital inflow and drive up the price of Ethereum.

These two points are substantial benefits that are foreseeable for Ethereum's price this year.

However, these upcoming changes are merely improvements along a foreseeable path. These enhancements simply make the "highway" wider and smoother, rather than being disruptive industry innovations or groundbreaking product applications.

The use cases of Ethereum seem to have peaked. In this cycle, there have been no projects on the main chain that have seen widespread participation, and prices have not exceeded historical highs. Its peak locked value remains at 2021.

It was once the preferred choice for building smart contract platforms, but now, with the improvement of blockchain infrastructure, there are more quality and low-cost public chains available, and Ethereum is no longer the only option. In this cycle, public chains like Solana, Sui, and TON have developed their own distinctive ecosystems. Leading Ethereum Layer 2 solutions like Base have also achieved their own successes.

Vitalik's decentralization is a good thing for the industry, indicating that the industry is maturing. Ethereum is no longer the sole leader, and more emerging talents can compete with it, stimulating a richer ecosystem. As a diversified blockchain ecosystem is established, Ethereum's importance in the industry is bound to decline.

Vitalik once said in an interview: "My life is about being a bridge for everything." Since 2015, the Ethereum Foundation has funded external projects exceeding its internal operating costs. These grants have connected more teams and promoted the development of various projects in the crypto market. Both Ethereum and Vitalik himself are laying the foundation for the crypto industry.

Ethereum and Vitalik himself should not bear the confusion and anger of people regarding the lack of innovation in the entire industry.

"If you examine your inner self, you will also find things worth fighting for." Vitalik, who knows why he fights, will return once again after a brief disappointment.

In the crypto community, confused and angry people will also make choices after deep self-reflection: to stay and become "builders," creating new things with a focused heart on barren ground, or to leave and chase the next trend, continuing to be a shrewd "speculator."