TechFlow news, October 20: Ethereum core developer and primary maintainer of the Geth client, Péter Szilágyi, publicly criticized the internal compensation system and governance structure of the Ethereum Foundation (EF), expressing that he is "deeply disappointed in EF." Szilágyi stated that working at EF has been "economically a bad decision" since he joined, with his total compensation over six years amounting to only $625,000 before tax and without incentives, during which time Ethereum's market capitalization grew from zero to approximately $450 billion. He pointed out that this low-pay structure forces members genuinely committed to protocol development to seek compensation externally, creating risks for "the protocol being captured by interest groups."
Szilágyi further criticized EF for unfair pay, lack of transparency, and centralized power, saying the foundation overly relies on people who "stay for idealistic reasons" and maintains an opaque internal culture by concealing salary information. He also noted that the Ethereum ecosystem has formed a small circle centered around Vitalik Buterin, where a few key opinion leaders and VC firms control major projects and decision-making directions. Szilágyi stated bluntly that Ethereum has shifted from idealism to realism, and its governance and incentive structures have "made the protocol designed to be capturable," adding that he "finds it hard to see a bright future."
