Vitalik Buterin Interview: Discussing Ethereum POS, Layer2, Cryptography, and AI

On April 7, 2025, Vitalik Buterin attended the Pop-X HK Research House event in Hong Kong. During the event, Yan, the founder of the DappLearning community, conducted a Chinese interview with Vitalik, covering several topics including ETH POS, Layer2, Cryptography, and AI. Here are the main points of the interview:

Views on POS Upgrade

Vitalik believes that the price fluctuations of BTC and ETH are unrelated to POW and POS. One issue facing ETH is that successful applications in the ecosystem may not bring corresponding value to ETH. More support is needed for applications that are beneficial to ETH holders and the long-term value of ETH.

PBS Architecture and Centralization Concerns

Vitalik stated that the PBS architecture may make block building more centralized, but the validation process can still remain decentralized. Through technologies like Fossil, the roles of selecting transactions and executing transactions can be separated, allowing small nodes to have the independent ability to choose transactions.

The Relationship Between Layer 1 and Layer 2

Vitalik believes that there are several problems with Layer 2 at the moment:

1. The progress in security is not fast enough.
2. Interoperability issues between Layer 2
3. Certain high-value applications ( such as DeFi ) are more suitable for running on Layer 1.

Therefore, Ethereum is working to improve the scalability of Layer1, planning to increase the Gas limit of Layer1 by 10 times around 2026.

Ethereum Upgrade Plan

Vitalik revealed that Ethereum plans to carry out the Pectra upgrade at the end of this month and the Fusaka upgrade in the third or fourth quarter. To expedite the upgrade process, Ethereum is enhancing inter-team coordination efficiency and considering relaxing the requirements for client readiness.

Cryptography and the Development of AI

Vitalik believes that ZK developers should focus on high-level languages and do not need to delve into the underlying algorithms. He is cautious about the prospects of FHE and MPC, considering that these technologies may introduce new security risks.

Regarding AI, Vitalik believes it may narrow the gap between experts and novices, providing new opportunities for everyone.

Expectations for the Ethereum Ecosystem

Vitalik hopes that developers can create:

1. Applications that users like to use and that are truly valuable.
2. Applications that have a positive impact on the world
3. Applications with sustainable business models

He believes that now is a good time to develop Ethereum applications, as many previous technical limitations have been overcome, and the difficulty of development has decreased due to the assistance of AI.