The co-founder of Ethereum, Vitalik Buterin, argues that the most valuable update for Ethereum might be knowing when to stop updating.
Buterin suggests that locking parts of the base layer could reduce errors and surprises, allowing Ethereum to function safely even if its maintainers disappear. He calls this the "exit test," with the goal of making the base protocol behave like a tool with minimal trust rather than a service that fails when developers stop maintaining it.
Instead of constant reinvention, Buterin envisions "hardening": a network that can be frozen without losing its core functionality. Innovation would shift to layer 2 solutions, wallets, privacy tools, and applications, while the base layer remains stable and secure.
This approach also constitutes a critique of the crypto culture that rewards fast followers. The long-term goal of Ethereum is to minimize the risks of high-impact updates through careful protocol design, ensuring its credibility and stability, while allowing evolution through client optimizations and parameter adjustments, rather than disruptive merges.
