The Ethereum community has recently been discussing Vitalik Buterin's decision to suspend his regular long articles in favor of writing a science fiction novel about decentralized governance. Co-founder Joseph Lubin has publicly expressed his support, stating that this doesn't mean Buterin is leaving Ethereum, but rather that it might be a more effective way to communicate.
Lubin publicly expressed his support
Lubin stated on X that anyone who thinks Buterin's writing of novels is deviating from the focus of Ethereum's development is misunderstanding the issue. He believes that fictional narratives are not necessarily inferior to technical articles, and may even convey complex ideas to a wider audience.
He described Buterin as one of the most important contributors and "governors" in the Ethereum ecosystem, and said he has always been an effective communicator. According to Lubin, this writing continues several themes that Ethereum has long emphasized, including open source, privacy, censorship resistance, and trust neutrality.
The new work discusses governance and AI.
Buterin previously stated in May that he would be pausing his regular long-form blog writing to try discussing decentralized governance in a science fiction format. He has completed the first two chapters and published them on his personal website.
Reports indicate that this work is not a traditional research article, but rather unfolds governance issues within a fictional setting. The disclosed content covers topics such as double voting, AI-assisted decision-making, and the limitations of DAOs in governance.
This also explains the divided community reaction. In the past, Buterin's technical articles often directly influenced public discussions about Ethereum, so some users questioned whether such a writing style was appropriate at a time when ETH prices were under pressure and the foundation's direction was being questioned; others believed that the novel format made it easier for outsiders to understand abstract governance concepts.
Privacy issues are heating up again
Besides governance, privacy was also a frequently mentioned keyword in this round of discussions. Some community users mentioned that the first two chapters of the novel already touched on the themes of open source and privacy, and used the settings in those chapters to start a second round of discussions.
Privacy has been a recurring issue for Ethereum in recent years. Previous reports have indicated that Ethereum developers pushed forward with the development of several privacy tools ahead of the network's 10th anniversary, and Buterin has also urged developers to focus on private currency, private identity, private voting, and private communication.
Judging from Lubin's statements, he seems more inclined to view this writing as part of Ethereum's external narrative rather than a shift in its technological roadmap. At this stage, the novel hasn't changed Ethereum's technological roadmap, but it has certainly brought Buterin's public role, the foundation's direction, and its ecosystem communication methods back into the spotlight of community discussion.
