- Péter Szilágyi raised concerns about central control within the Ethereum Foundation leadership group.
- Sandeep Nailwal said major Ethereum contributors often feel ignored and lack support from the core team.
- Vitalik Buterin responded by highlighting Polygon’s role in Ethereum’s progress and future development plans.
Ethereum core developer Péter Szilágyi published a letter criticizing the Ethereum Foundation. He questioned the undue control exercised by the founder, Vitalik Buterin, and a few people in the project. Szilágyi described this inner circle as a concentrated power structure that directs most development decisions. He referred to it as a “Vitalik-centric interest group.”
According to the letter, 5 to 10 individuals, along with a few venture capital firms, steer the ecosystem’s direction. Szilágyi claimed that project success often depends on alignment with this group. He proposed that there is no longer a norm of open and merit-based contributions. These remarks have revived the principle of Ethereum governance and decentralization.
Frustration Builds Among Key Ecosystem Players
After Szilaghi, Polygon CEO Sandeep Nailwal said he was frustrated about the inner machinery of Ethereum. He expressed skepticism over his continued allegiance to Ethereum after years of supporting it. Nailwal called the ecosystem a place where significant contributors feel sidelined. He emphasized that Polygon has received little backing from Ethereum’s core community.
He also criticized social behaviors within Ethereum, which he said marginalize impactful projects like Polygon. He noted that Ethereum-linked projects built on Polygon are often credited to Ethereum alone. According to him, this downplays Polygon’s role in their development and success.
Layer-2 Debate Intensifies
Nailwal claimed that Polygon was not given enough credit in the Ethereum network as a Layer-2 solution. He suggested that the initiative would be valuable in case it established itself as an autonomous Layer-1 blockchain. However, Nailwal still declared that he is resolved to give strength to the Layer-2 ecosystem.
He challenged the Ethereum community to consider the reason why core contributors are becoming more and more disconnected. This growing tension follows Ethereum’s recent upgrade, which introduced cryptographic proofs. The upgrade, however, did little to ease internal dissatisfaction. Instead, the criticism has put Ethereum’s leadership and structure under fresh scrutiny.
Buterin Responds Amid Fallout
Vitalik Buterin has also admitted that Polygon has made its contribution and is led by its leaders. He noted the efforts of Polygon on scalability and innovation, which indicated efforts to restore poor relationships. He also highlighted the importance of Layer-2 projects in achieving Ethereum’s future goals, including improved network efficiency. He recently backed Coinbase’s Base as a secure Layer-2.
Buterin praised Nailwal’s role in returning funds that later supported biotech research. He further observed the prospect of the ZK roadmap of Polygon, which might make it more secure by making it closer to Ethereum Layer-1. In June, Vitalik Buterin confirmed that Ethereum will scale its layer 1 network by 10x within the next year. Even with the increasing tensions, both parties seem to be oriented towards the promotion of mutual technical interests.
