The Ethereum co-founder argues for a pivot from the rollup-centric roadmap, citing progress made towards scaling the base layer.
After years of Layer 2 (L2) networks popping up in an attempt to scale Ethereum and claim market share, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin says that the L2 model for scalability no longer makes sense due to the Layer 1’s (L1) scaling efforts.
“The original vision of L2s and their role in Ethereum no longer makes sense, and we need a new path,” Buterin wrote on X, citing issues such as slow progress towards decentralization, while noting that the Ethereum mainnet is scaling and consistently maintaining low gas costs.
Gas costs, in particular, were a major obstacle for decentralized finance (DeFi) power users in 2021 and 2022, when network activity surged amid the popularity of DeFi and non-fungible tokens (NFTs). During high-demand periods, such as a hyped NFT mint or a capped DeFi vault deposit, gas fees could skyrocket to thousands of dollars just to attempt a transaction, with no guarantee of its success.
The infamous Otherside NFT mint from the Bored Ape Yacht Club led to more than 55,000 ETH, worth $193 million at the time, being burned. While ETH holders who didn’t participate in the mint likely celebrated the supply burn, many users attempted to mint Otherside NFTs but failed, incinerating thousands of dollars in the process.
What Should Layer 2s Do Now?
Buterin went on to say that L2s can and should add value other than just scaling Ethereum. He cited features such as privacy, application-specific specialization, non-financial application-focused chains, various iterations of high-speed scaling, and lastly, built-in oracles or dispute resolution for applications like Polymarket.
Layer 2 tokens in particular have been a minefield for investors, with tokens of leading L2s such as ARB and OP falling more than 90% from their respective all-time highs, while other highly anticipated Layer 2 ecosystems, such as Blast, Scroll, and Linea, were unable to retain activity after their initial launch phases.
