Vitalik Buterin, one of the co-founders of Ethereum, has suggested that Ethereum’s fundamental protocols need simplification. He seems to be looking to Bitcoin’s straightforward design as a model to enhance the efficiency, security, and accessibility of the network.
In his recent blog post titled “Simplignes of L1,” published on May 3rd, Buterin shared his vision for reworking Ethereum’s structure involving consensus, execution, and shared components.
Buterin states, “I’ll explain that Ethereum five years from now is just as simple as Bitcoin.”
While recent updates like Proof-of-Stake (POS) and the integration of ZK-SNARK have strengthened Ethereum, he pointed out that technical complexity is weighing down development cycles, leading to higher costs and an increased risk of bugs.
“Historically, Ethereum has often not done this (sometimes due to my own decisions), which has contributed to many of our excessive development spending, security risks of all kinds, and isolating nature of R&D culture.”
One significant focus is the consensus layer. Buterin proposed a new model called “three-slot finality,” aiming to eliminate complex aspects such as epochs, synchronization committees, and validator shuffling.
He noted that having fewer active validators at a given time could enable a simpler implementation of fork selection rules. Additionally, he recommended simpler fork selection methods and the use of scalable transparent arguments of Knowledge (STARK)-based aggregation protocols to improve network coordination.
For the execution layer, Buterin is advocating a shift from the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) to more straightforward, ZK-friendly virtual machines like RISC-V, which promises performance improvements—up to 100 times better for zero-knowledge proofs—potentially simplifying the protocol further.
RISC-V is an open-source architecture known for using a small set of simple instructions, ideal for efficient and easy implementation. To ensure backward compatibility, he suggested that Legacy EVM contracts could operate via a RISC-V interpreter while allowing support for both VMs during the transition.
Buterin also pushed for a standardized approach across the entire protocol. He proposed using a single method for erasure coding, favoring a serialization format (specifically SSZ), and employing tree structures to minimize unnecessary complexity and streamline Ethereum infrastructure.
“Simplicity is in many ways similar to decentralization,” he remarked. He suggested adopting a “maximum line” target, akin to what TinyGrad does, and emphasized that critical consensus logic should remain as lean and auditable as possible.
Legacy features would remain but would exist outside the core specification. Buterin’s call for simplification is rooted in the concern that Ethereum is losing ground to rival blockchains.
During a panel discussion at the Cointelegraph event on May 2, Nansen’s CEO Alex Svanevik noted that Ethereum’s advantage over other L1 blockchains has diminished. He reflected, “If I had been asked whether Ethereum would dominate crypto three or four years ago, I would have said yes, but it’s clear that’s not the case anymore.”
