Ethereum's Buterin Names Examples of Idealistic Crypto Initiatives
Ethereum's Vitalik Buterin has highlighted some examples where the Ethereum community remains true to the original ethos of cryptocurrency.
Idealism in the Crypto Community
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin asserts that the cryptocurrency community hasn't abandoned its idealistic initiatives. This came in response to Joe Weisenthal's post, host of Bloomberg's "Odd Lots" podcast. Weisenthal noted significant shifts in crypto culture over the past five to six years, suggesting a move away from idealistic concepts like democracy on the blockchain and Universal Basic Income (UBI) towards more financial-driven interests.
Examples of Idealistic Crypto Initiatives
Buterin countered this by pointing to several ongoing projects that align with crypto's initial ideals:
Farcaster
An Optimism-based protocol, Farcaster is building a social network with significant levels of decentralization. Though it has a low number of daily users, it successfully raised $150 million earlier this year. This reflects ongoing investor confidence in decentralized social networks.
Lens Protocol
Another example is Lens Protocol, a decentralized social network that empowers users to actually own their content. This aligns perfectly with crypto's fundamental values of decentralization and user autonomy.
Democratic Funding Mechanisms
Buterin also mentioned quadratic funding as a democratic way of funding grounded in quadratic voting. This allows for more equitable fund distribution based on the broader community's preferences:
- Gitcoin Grants Program: A quarterly initiative utilizing quadratic funding to allocate resources in a mathematically optimal way.
- Retroactive Funding: Funding is provided to projects that have already demonstrated their value.
Privacy and Identity Preservation
Zupass: This is a personal cryptocurrency manager that maintains user privacy by not revealing their entire identities.
Zero-Knowledge Proofs (ZKPs) and Zero-Knowledge Voting: These methods preserve user privacy while conducting transactions and voting on the Ethereum network.
Conclusion
Despite the ongoing meme coin frenzy, the Ethereum community continues to embrace the founding principles of decentralization and privacy. These ongoing idealistic projects underscore the commitment to the original vision of a more open and decentralized internet.
Keywords: Ethereum, Vitalik Buterin, cryptocurrency, decentralization, Farcaster, Lens Protocol, quadratic funding, privacy, zero-knowledge proofs, Gitcoin, retroactive funding, social network.
