Ethereum

My thoughts on Ethereum’s current narrative, the risks of memecoins, and why we must ensure it remains the home of innovation—not speculation.

Let's remind ourselves and others what Ethereum truly stands for.

> Speculation doesn’t necessarily drive meaningful innovation — often the opposite

In the US, this is false.

You should read Boom.

teddit

/ted | exploring the onchain frontier | surfing @ venice, ca | eating @ gjusta / gjelina

great read indeed.

I'll use the occasion to clarify that speculation can indeed fuel innovation under the right conditions, but to Ethereum today it also:
- penalizes innovators and rewards value extractors
- prioritizes short-term gains over long-term utility
- obscures main value prop -> hurts the narrative -> confuses new users -> hinders adoption https://warpcast.com/jacopo/0x8a430ec1

I'll take the opposite side. 

ETH price has not gone up due to lack of speculation on Ethereum’s future growth - the market is saying it prefers other things.

I think the reason for this is that the main value prop of ETH is unclear - if the future vision was clearer, we may attract more speculation, which may lead to more builders and more innovation.

Until that happens, people are fine speculating on other chains.

we share a similar stance then. I'm not advocating for less speculation, but for Ethereum to regain an identity / value prop not uniquely associated with it and grounded in its core values.

I'm indifferent to the level of speculation on Ethereum, and agree that objectively the more the better. But I don't believe that in order to attract traders you need to compromise on its identity.

While Solana's main narrative revolves around memecoins and speculation, Ethereum has historically been grounded in values like permissionless innovation and security, with defi (trading and speculation) as natural byproduct.

I believe Ethereum should double down on these core values, as they’ve proven to be the primary drivers of builder activity and value accrual over time.

The problem I see is that a sizeable part of the ecosystem is now trying to appeal to the broader market by positioning Ethereum as a better alternative to Solana for speculation and launching memecoins. and while that might deliver a short-term volume boost, it hurts in the long-term by diluting Ethereum’s narrative and confusing new users.

Heard. 

If you're advocating for Ethereum to regain an identity not associated with speculation, it sounds like you're advocating for less speculation than we have now. 

And if you agree that speculation is what ultimately drives the interest and activity that leads to innovation, then wouldn't we need more of it?