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Addressing the centralization of the Ethereum network, Vitalik Buterin highlighted that implementing easier and cheaper node solutions will ensure the ETH blockchain remains decentralized in the long run.
Concerns about the centralization of Ethereum emerged soon after the token switched from a Proof-of-Work (PoW) to a Proof-of-Stake (PoS) protocol in August 2022. Although twelve months have passed since the historical Ethereum Merge, most of the active ETH nodes still rely on service providers for operation, with Amazon Web Service (AWS) alone accounting for 59.7% of these nodes. This gives rise to centralization risks, namely increased censorship and major disruptions in case of hardware failure or security breach of a web service provider.
At the Korea Blockchain Week event, Buterin claimed that simplifying the process of running nodes can drive the ETH community away from centralized service providers. He also reasoned that making the Ethereum nodes stateless would be a major step towards avoiding the threat of centralization.
Statelessness involves decreasing the storage space required by Ethereum nodes by reducing, or even removing, the need to store state data (the information required to process newer transactions). The upcoming “Verge” and “Purge” updates to the Ethereum network will implement new ways to implement weak statelessness for Ethereum nodes. Buterin, however, admitted that the goal of statelessness will not be completed in the near future, adding,
“These technical problems will have to be addressed eventually... maybe a 10-year timescale, maybe a 20-year timescale.”
The founder of Ethereum also highlighted other fixes for the issue of centralization. According to him, simplifying documentation and increasing the accessibility and security of Ethereum staking will help maintain the decentralized nature of the ETH ecosystem. He concluded by stating that the need of the hour is to increase the scalability of the Ethereum network.