According to CoinMeta, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin stated in an interview on Network State Conference on October 9, 2026, that a sign of Ethereum's maturity is its ability to continue to develop without his involvement. He believes that decentralization does not mean changing from one leader to none, but rather from one leader to many leaders, and that Ethereum has already begun to move in this direction. Vitalik is concerned about whether the foundation and community members can continue to drive Ethereum without his participation, while still adhering to core values such as security and privacy. He pointed out that recently, more and more people are taking the initiative to act without waiting for him to speak up first, which he considers to be the most critical positive signal.