Vitalik Buterin Calls for Radical Ethereum App-Layer Experiments While Preserving Core CROPS Principles

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin called for "bolder and more open-minded" experimentation in the network's application layer while keeping core properties such as censorship resistance, open source, privacy and security (CROPS) unchanged, according to a post he shared on X on March 5. He said Ethereum's base layer is maturing into a robust settlement engine, but the surrounding stack—including L2s, wallets, DeFi, oracles and future AI agents—often re-centralizes risks and should prioritize AI-native, privacy-first applications that respect the chain's cryptographic guarantees. Buterin also criticized a short-term, meme-driven "casino" culture, citing Milady NFTs as focused on aesthetics and in-group memes rather than tools for people facing capital controls or censorship, and concluded that Ethereum should be treated as untouchable public infrastructure while experimentation shifts to higher layers that inherit its trustless security.