About Vitalik Buterin
Vitalik Buterin, co-founder of Ethereum, has been speaking at multiple events in 2026 about the future of the Ethereum protocol and its intersection with artificial intelligence. In a panel on the Ethereum Economic Zone (EEZ), Buterin described the concept as an effort to rethink layer-2 solutions in a way that integrates them more deeply with Ethereum, rather than treating them as separate chains. He argued that without strong pressures toward interoperability and censorship resistance at the user layer, the result can be "walled garden monopolies" that use the base layer primarily for virtue signaling. He also identified oracles as a "skeleton in the closet" of Ethereum, noting that their security has not received the same level of rigor as layer-2 scaling solutions.
In separate talks, Buterin has emphasized Ethereum's role as a "public billboard" and a "shared computation layer" for high-value guaranteed execution, rather than a platform meant to compete with high-frequency trading or chase maximum speed. He stated that Ethereum needs to pass a "walk away test," meaning it should remain reliable even if no core developers remain. On AI, Buterin argued that while local and open-weight AI models have improved significantly, the mainstream open-source ecosystem does not by default prioritize privacy, security, or censorship resistance. He expressed hope that the Ethereum community can create tools that optimize for these properties, including ZK-based payment channels that make API requests private and unlinkable. Buterin also contrasted crypto's approach to safety with centralized visions that he described as "trust the uncle in the sky," saying crypto aims to create systems that preserve user agency and privacy.
Source: AI-verified profile updated from Vitalik Buterin's recent appearances.
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✨ AI-enhanced transcript with speaker attribution
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Cartek0:07
Good evening everybody. My name is Cartek, co-founder of ETH Global. Welcome to ETH Global New Delhi, a hackathon focused on builders. Over eight years, we've done 220+ events, onboarded 150,000 builders, and awarded $15 million in prizes. This weekend, 1,900 participants are here, 30% new to web3. Hacking starts now for 37 hours; all projects must be built from scratch. We have $200,000 in prizes from 21 partners. Key rules: wear your wristband, do not use hotspots, and use our Wi-Fi. There is a finalist track for the top 10 projects. Food, mentors, and workshops are available. Be respectful and have fun. Now, let's bring on our keynote.
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Matt24:29
GM New Delhi! I'm Matt from 1inch. 1inch was born at a hackathon in 2019. We've processed over $750 billion in volume with 25 million users. We have three bounties this weekend: $12,000 for a cross-chain intents extension, $6,500 for limit order strategies, and API usage bounties up to $300 each. Happy hacking!
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Cartek26:40
All right, we are ready for our main event. Let's bring on Vitalik. He'll join us remotely to talk about practical onchain privacy. Let's give a massive round of applause. Ev, can you hear us? We'll do a quick audio check. There we go, we are not getting audio. Let's make sure it's not a mute thing. Oh, there we go, we're all set.
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Vitalik Buterin27:21
Okay, are you hearing me well?
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Cartek27:24
We can. Welcome.
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Vitalik Buterin27:25
Perfect, thank you. Today I'll discuss building privacy-preserving applications on Ethereum across four categories: funds transfer, voting, identity, and DeFi. The core technology is ZK-SNARKs. For transfers, systems like Tornado Cash, privacy pools, and Railgun exist; the frontier is better UX and proof aggregation. For voting, private voting prevents coercion, e.g., Macy with Aragon. For identity, ZK proofs can verify humanity without revealing personal data, and pluralistic identity systems like Gitcoin passport can reduce reliance on single providers. For DeFi, privacy protects against sandwich attacks and keeps portfolios confidential. Additionally, wallets need privacy improvements: route all requests through one RPC, use TEEs and oblivious RAM. The technology is mature; the remaining challenges are practical UX. This is one area of Ethereum where progress is most needed.
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Cartek47:46
Amazing, thanks Vitalik. This is a great primer. Not much more to go. Prizes: over $200,000 from partners including 1inch, Citria, ENS, and many more. Team formation is in the workshop room in 30 minutes. Make sure to enjoy the weekend, sleep, have fun, and learn something new. Happy hacking! See you on Sunday.
