Ethereum Foundation restructures R&D team amid layoffs as part of a shift in strategic direction.
The organization has let go of some members from its research and development department to better align with its evolving focus on protocol design and performance improvements. This move comes as the foundation aims to enhance the Ethereum base layer and address scaling challenges facing the network.
R&D division rebranded as protocol
The Ethereum Foundation announced that it has renamed its Protocol Research and Development division to simply “Protocol.” This rebranding is intended to reflect the team’s renewed mission, which includes improving user experience, scaling infrastructure, and optimizing Ethereum’s blobspace. The foundation believes that this focus is critical to supporting widespread blockchain adoption. As part of the transition, all Protocol teams have been tasked with contributing to these efforts, especially in areas such as zero-knowledge rollups and layer-2 technology.
Staff reductions and Iinternal changes
While the foundation has not disclosed the exact number of employees affected, it confirmed that not all R&D members will remain part of the new structure. Despite the layoffs, the organization expressed support for the departing employees, encouraging their continued involvement in the Ethereum ecosystem and suggesting that other projects consider hiring them. Co-executive director Hsiao-Wei Weng stated on social media that the restructuring should help the team concentrate on delivering essential outcomes. He also recognized the contributions of Tim Beiko, Alex Stokes, and Barnabé Monnot in shaping the newly formed Protocol team.
Leadership and Governance overhaul
Since 2023 began, the Ethereum Foundation has been modifying its leadership and governance procedures. Vitalik Buterin, one of the co-founders, announced a set of improvements in January meant to overcome difficulties that have slowed Ethereum. The purpose of these reforms was to improve how the public was informed, how its members discussed matters and how they supported developers of applications. Even so, employees at the technology company began debating over priorities and how open the company should be.
Members of the community say that the network is affected by pricey transactions, moderate levels of interest from developers and slow actions from its leaders which puts it at a disadvantage to Solana. Changes were also instituted such as separating the responsibilities of the board from those of the executives. The foundation gave the roles of co-executive directors to Hsiao-Wei Weng and Tomasz Stańczak and Aya Miyaguchi became president. Since leaving the Solana project, Danny Ryan has started a new project studying Ethereum in the world of finance.