Crypto “Has to Transform Into Something Useful” by 2032: Vitalik Buterin

Buterin has reiterated his view that ZK-Rollups will likely be Ethereum’s best Layer 2 scaling weapon, saying that quantum computing will be an important consideration for the protocol in the future.

Buterin on Ethereum’s future

Vitalik Buterin is optimistic about Ethereum’s future, but he believes there are big challenges ahead.

The Ethereum creator discussed the protocol’s long-term future at a closed press conference ahead of BUIDL Asia and EthSeoul today, focusing on scaling technology, quantum computing and key obstacles facing the network.

Buterin said the next decade will be crucial for blockchain technology, arguing that applications will soon have to prove their utility in an open market. “I think the next 10 years is when crypto needs to transform into something that is not based on promises of being useful in the future, but is actually useful,” he said. “Because many applications are promising in theory, but they’re simply not viable today due to scaling issues.” He added that if a blockchain application doesn’t work when Ethereum completes its “Merge” into Proof-of-Stake and zero-knowledge proof technology takes off, there’s a good chance it “doesn’t make sense” to use the blockchain in the first place.

Elaborating on scaling issues facing Ethereum, Buterin expressed enthusiasm for the upcoming wave of Layer 2 rollup solutions, taking the position that proof-based zero-knowledge ZK-Rollups would prevail over Optimistic Rollups as the superior, albeit trickier, technology. “In the longer term, ZK-Rollups will eventually beat Optimistic Rollups because they have these fundamental advantages, like not needing a seven-day withdrawal period,” he said, before commenting on the difficulty of building ZK-Rollups. “ZK is a technology that is just hard to build. There are many challenges, and Optimistic Rollup technology is more mature.” Buterin clarified that he was still confident that some of the current Optimistic Rollup projects would succeed, but expected some projects to pivot in the future. “They’re going to do well. But I fully expect them to eventually switch to ZK at some point.”

A “complete” Ethereum

Buterin also commented on how a “complete” Ethereum would fare in the deep future following his recent remarks at EthCC in Paris, where he declared that Ethereum would be “55% complete” after the merger. “After the big items– you know, the merge, the surge, the purge, the edge, the splurge – Ethereum will basically be in a place where the protocol doesn’t need to change. Everything can be done on layer 2.”

Buterin added a caveat that Ethereum would need to account for developments in quantum computing sometime in the distant future. “We have to upgrade at some point to quantum security,” he said, envisioning a transition to “new forms of cryptography” that would be resistant to potential attacks. Crypto skeptics have often pointed out that quantum computing could kill blockchains, but Buterin said it would be a while before crypto builders need to make changes. “We are constant very close contact with the AI ​​researchers who continue to work on that problem and create better algorithms,” he said. “But it’s a long way off, and it could be 10, 20 or 30 years from now.”

Disclosure: At the time of writing, the author of this piece owned ETH and several other cryptocurrencies.