Innovation Deficit Hinders EVM Ecosystem Growth

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin recently criticized the current wave of EVM chains for their severe homogeneity problem. These projects often simply copy existing architectures or only connect to Ethereum through week-delayed optimistic bridges. Buterin argues this superficial integration model is draining the ecosystem's innovation capacity.

He compared this practice to early DeFi projects that mindlessly replicated Compound's governance model. While this might seem safe in the short term, it ultimately leads to innovation stagnation and ecosystem paralysis over time.

  • Mindless replication of existing architectures
  • Superficial bridge integration
  • Lack of innovation motivation

Deep Integration Trumps Surface-Level Connection

For truly valuable new chains, Buterin established a key standard: they must develop substantial technical dependencies with Ethereum. He used prediction market applications as an example to demonstrate how genuine L1-L2 collaboration creates value: market issuance and settlement on L1, while transaction execution happens on Rollups or L2 systems, with L1 verifying signatures and states.

This architecture ensures security while enhancing efficiency through layered design. Buterin emphasized project teams should prioritize this deep integration rather than pursuing superficial bridge certifications.

Innovation Path: Transparency & Trust Minimization

Buterin identified another promising development direction: achieving algorithm execution transparency through technologies like STARKs. These application-specific chains can verify algorithm updates in government, social media, or gaming platforms, ensuring compliance with predefined rules.

While these chains don't fully depend on Ethereum, their technology-driven innovation minimizes trust requirements and enables novel economic activities. This technology-led innovation represents the direction EVM ecosystem should pursue.

Two Core Principles for New Projects

Buterin concluded with guidance for new projects:

  • Must deliver genuine technological innovation, not just replicate existing EVM chains
  • Project promotion must align with actual capabilities, with Ethereum connection levels accurately reflecting technical dependencies and ecological value

These two principles aren't just about technological innovation - they form the foundation for ensuring ecosystem interoperability and long-term value creation. Only by adhering to innovation and substantive integration can the EVM ecosystem avoid homogeneous competition and achieve sustainable development.