Ethereum core developer departs for AI amid leadership concerns
2025-01-22
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An Ethereum core developer has left the community to pursue innovations within the artificial intelligence landscape.
On Jan. 21, a prominent Ethereum core developer, Eric Conner, announced his departure from the Ethereum community after Vitalik Buterin dismissed calls for a leadership shakeup and claimed sole authority over the Ethereum Foundation. 
“The person deciding the new EF leadership team is me. One of the goals of the ongoing reform is to give the EF a ‘proper board,’ but until that happens, it’s me,” Buterin said. 
While many supported Buterin’s decision to solely run Ethereum until reforms for an official board kick in, several community members called out the move, citing ambiguity with the ethos of the blockchain technology — the pursuit of decentralization.
Despite a long-term 11-year affiliation with the Ethereum community, Conner sided with the latter. Responding to Buterin’s message, the core developer wrote on X:
Losing interest in Ethereum amid leadership concerns
Connor said that he “simply lost passion” after realizing the importance of community and embracing change to serve a larger community. He added:
He announced his switch to AI in another X post. 
Conner will initially work on building Freysa.ai, an evolving AI agent, but is open to collaborating on building other AI tools. 
Vitalik Buterin attempts leadership restructuring
On Jan. 18, Buterin announced major changes to the Ethereum Foundation’s leadership to emphasize technical expertise and improve communication between the foundation and builders in the Ethereum ecosystem.
Amid the major overhaul announcement, he said, “People seeking a different vision are welcome to start their own orgs.” 
This leadership change at the Ethereum Foundation follows a rocky year in 2024, which saw the Foundation’s spending, roadmap goals and personnel come under fire from the Ethereum community.