Catenaa, Monday, January 05, 2026- Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin late last week warned that rising concentration of power across governments, corporations and social movements threatens democratic systems and individual freedoms.
He also called for deeper decentralization to counter the trend.
In a newly published essay titled “Balance of Power,” Buterin said modern economies of scale now overpower traditional checks that once limited dominance.
He argued that rapid technological progress, automation and closed systems allow institutions to grow faster than social or market restraints can respond.
The essay describes a modern environment where state authority, corporate influence and mass movements strengthen at the same time, reducing space for individual choice.
Buterin said large corporations increasingly reshape regulation to their advantage, while governments risk acting as market participants rather than neutral rule-setters.
He pointed to evidence that highly centralized political systems perform worse economically than those built around institutions, suggesting structure matters more than ideology.
He also referenced theoretical risks tied to advanced technology, where harm becomes easier to execute as tools spread.
To address these threats, Buterin proposed mandatory diffusion of technology.
The approach would require broader sharing of tools and systems to prevent control from pooling in a few hands while preserving innovation.
He promoted adversarial interoperability, allowing new services to connect with existing platforms without permission.
Examples included alternative social media interfaces, tools that filter automated content and decentralized crypto-to-fiat systems that bypass centralized gatekeepers.
The essay follows Buterin’s recent criticism of growing complexity and central influence within Ethereum’s ecosystem.
Despite those concerns, network usage continues to rise. Ethereum processed about 2.2 million transactions on December 29, while average fees fell to about 17 cents after recent protocol upgrades improved efficiency.
