Original author: Marine, Founder of MC² Finance
Original translation: Vernacular Blockchain
1. Balaji says Ethereum is the center-left of cryptocurrency
Vitalik is committed to building public goods. He pursues programmable equality, decentralized institutions, and fair coordination.
Balaji is on the center-right. He is for opt-out, autonomy. Ethereum is the home of the “technocratic left.”
2. DeFi is becoming more secure, but not yet completely secure
Vitalik: “Risks are approaching traditional finance.”
Balaji: “You risk a 100% loss to get a 5% gain.” A protocol is only truly secure after a crisis, not just an audit. Time > total loss limit.
3. The US dollar is not as safe as you think
“Only invest dollars you can afford to lose.” It sounds like a joke. But for billions of people in Argentina, Nigeria, and Lebanon, it’s already true. Stablecoins are now infrastructure (not an experiment).
4. The definition of DeFi is changing
Balaji: “It’s the takeover after the system ends.” Not an upgrade, but a replacement. Always online, borderless, composable. DeFi is not just better plumbing. It’s a different physics of value. (Get big applause for this)
5. Cryptocurrency will not weaken the dollar, but it will expose it
Vitalik: 99% of stablecoins are backed by USD. But this will solidify USD dominance until it is no longer so. Once fiat comes online first, it will lose its geographic monopoly. Fiat will die like newspapers (slowly, then all at once)
6. Tips will continue to exist
Balaji: “The tip is to program in English.” It’s not a solution, it’s a skill. AI won’t replace humans, but it will amplify the sharpest ones. Clarity = leverage.
7. AGI? Not God, Just a Founder
Vitalik: “When AGI builds a profitable company, it will be real.” It’s measurable. It’s practical.
Balaji agrees: AI is not goal seeking, it’s pattern matching. The world still runs on human intent.
8. DeSci = DeFi for medicine
Todays medical system profits from disease. DeSci turns that on its head. Truth reigns supreme. Peer validation. Science as code, not pharma marketing. Balajis bet: DeSci is a real alternative to institutional decay.
9. Ethereum needs a North Star. DAU? Price? TVL?
VB: Just let people use it.
Balaji: DeFi is a post-fiat matrix. Once the value is online, everything can be traded. There is no bank liquidity. There is no borderless market. (Ask a lot of questions, I cant reveal xD)
10. The system will not be reformed, it will be rebuilt
Balaji believes that the Internet is the opposite of DC. Vitalik believes that cryptocurrency is a system with fairer rules. Both agree: the old world is collapsing. The next world will not be built in DC. It will be coded. On the chain.
