Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin on Saturday published a proposal, or pull request, that would combine backend programs used by nodes to interact with Ethereum’s Beacon Chain, which supports consensus and staking, and the protocol’s execution layer into one unified code structure to simplify node configuration.
People managing Ethereum nodes, also called validators, currently must run two separate programs, each of which requires configuration and synchronization to coordinate and communicate data generated by Ethereum’s consensus and execution layers.
This increases the technical complexity of running a node or providing Ethereum network validation services, preventing regular users from running their own infrastructure and forcing reliance on third-party service providers.
“I feel like we’ve implicitly made the decision at every level that running a node is such a scary DevOps task that it can be left to the professionals,” Buterin said in a post on X. He continued:
“That’s not the case. We need to turn this around. Running your own Ethereum infrastructure should be a fundamental right for every person and household. ‘The hardware requirements are high, so it’s okay that the DevOps skills and time requirements are also high’ is not an excuse.”
Even those who can afford high-end computer equipment to set up an Ethereum node and have the technical knowledge typically lack the time to set it up, Buterin said, adding that “nodes should be easy.”
The Ethereum network and other clever contract blockchains have faced criticism due to the technical complexity and hardware requirements to run a node, which has also raised concerns about the centralization of these networks.
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Buterin proposes partially stateless nodes to further decentralize the network
In May 2025, Buterin proposed semi-stateless nodes, which do not store the full block history and only store data required by the module operating the nodes.
This reduces hardware costs and data storage requirements for users running nodes for personal purposes such as sending transactions and verifying the blockchain.
Disk space is usually the main bottleneck for node operators, According to to Go-Ethereum (GETH). Smart contract blockchain networks like Ethereum generate significant amounts of data that require increasing amounts of storage space, making specialized node hardware a necessity.
“A market structure dominated by a few remote procedure call (RPC) providers is one that will come under intense pressure to deplatform or censor users. Many RPC providers are already excluding entire countries,” Buterin he wrote.
In overdue January, Buterin said he had allocated 16,384 Ether from his personal holdings, worth about $45 million, to support privacy-preserving technologies, open hardware and secure, verifiable software. He added that the funds would be rolled out gradually over the coming years as the Ethereum Foundation enters what he described as a period of “soft austerity” while continuing to execute its technical roadmap.
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