Ethereum Ecosystem — 2026-05-19

Top Story

Ethereum Foundation Researchers Exit as Organizational Shake-Up Deepens

Two more Ethereum Foundation researchers — Carl Beek and Julian Ma — announced their departures on May 19, the latest in a growing wave of exits from the influential nonprofit organization. Their announcements extend what observers are calling a significant period of organizational change at the Foundation, which has long served as a key steward of Ethereum's development direction.

The back-to-back departures come at a sensitive moment for the ecosystem. While the Ethereum Foundation's role has always been described as a catalyst rather than a central authority, the loss of multiple researchers in a short window raises questions about internal dynamics, direction-setting, and the pipeline of talent driving core research. Both Beek and Ma made their exits public, signaling a degree of transparency about the ongoing changes.

The broader context matters: the Foundation has been navigating significant strategic questions around Ethereum's roadmap, including the Glamsterdam and Hegota upgrades, quantum-resistance research, and the evolving relationship between the base layer and its Layer 2 ecosystem. Institutional continuity at the research level is seen as important to maintaining protocol development momentum.

What this means for the ecosystem: while protocol development is distributed across many independent teams and client developers, the Foundation's research arm has historically provided intellectual leadership on cryptographic foundations and long-term roadmap vision. The community will be watching whether these departures affect the pace or direction of key research efforts.

Protocol & Development

• Vitalik: AI-Assisted Formal Verification as "Final Form" of Software Development: Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin published new commentary arguing that combining artificial intelligence with formal verification could represent the ultimate evolution of software engineering. He specifically highlighted the threat of AI-driven exploits against cryptographic infrastructure, suggesting that mathematically verified software — where code correctness is proven rather than assumed — could become essential for securing high-value blockchain systems. The argument carries direct relevance for Ethereum's own security posture as the network secures hundreds of billions in value.

• Vitalik Highlights Raw EVM and Lean for a New Era of Ethereum Research: Related to his formal verification commentary, Buterin spotlighted work being done on raw EVM execution combined with the Lean proof assistant as a new direction for Ethereum-adjacent research. The approach would allow developers to write and mathematically verify EVM-level code, potentially raising the security floor for critical smart contract infrastructure.

• Ethereum Foundation Organizational Transition Continues: With Carl Beek and Julian Ma's departures announced on May 19, the Ethereum Foundation has now seen a string of high-profile researcher exits in recent months. The Foundation has emphasized Ethereum's decentralized development model, but the pace of departures is drawing scrutiny from community members tracking protocol governance and research continuity.

DeFi Pulse

• Total Ethereum DeFi TVL: Current TVL data is tracked live at DefiLlama. No specific fresh figure available from the past 24 hours with a verified timestamp.

• Top Movers: No verifiable same-day protocol-specific TVL movement data is available from research results with a post-May 17 timestamp.

No confirmed DeFi-specific exploits, governance votes, or major protocol launches with verified post-May 17 sourcing are available in today's research results. The DefiLlama dashboard remains the authoritative real-time source.

Layer 2 & Scaling

• L2 Ecosystem Scorecard (Mid-2026): A fresh comparative analysis published within the past day benchmarks Arbitrum, Base, OP Mainnet, zkSync Era, and other leading rollups across TVL, fees, TPS, and L2Beat security stage ratings. The data offers a current snapshot of the competitive L2 landscape heading into the second half of 2026, with rollups collectively delivering a scaling factor of roughly 50x Ethereum's baseline transaction throughput according to L2Beat activity metrics.

• L2Beat Activity Metrics: According to L2Beat's live dashboard, rollups are currently processing roughly 666 UOPS (user operations per second) on a past-day basis, representing a ~50x scaling factor over Ethereum's base layer at ~23 UOPS. Validiums and Optimiums add another ~13 UOPS, while "Others" contribute ~248 UOPS.

• DeFi Strategy Guide for L2 Selection: A new practical guide published within the past few days compares Arbitrum, Base, OP Mainnet, and zkSync for DeFi users in 2026, covering security stage ratings from L2Beat, fee structures, and TPS benchmarks matched to different trading use cases. The guide reflects the increasingly sophisticated decision-making required from users navigating a multi-rollup ecosystem.

What to Watch

• Ethereum Foundation Researcher Pipeline: With Carl Beek and Julian Ma's departures announced today, monitor whether additional exits follow and how the Foundation addresses continuity on key research tracks — especially quantum resistance and formal verification work.
• Vitalik's AI + Formal Verification Thesis: Buterin's comments about AI-assisted formal verification being the "final form" of software development are likely to spark significant community discussion. Watch for follow-up blog posts, EIPs, or tooling announcements from teams exploring the raw EVM + Lean approach he highlighted.
• L2 Security Stage Progressions: With L2Beat now tracking rollup security stages comprehensively, watch for any of the major rollups (Arbitrum, Base, zkSync) to announce upgrades to higher security stages — a key metric the community is increasingly focused on.
• Hegota Upgrade Timeline: FOCIL (Fork-Choice enforced Inclusion Lists) was formally added to the Hegota upgrade roadmap earlier this year, targeting late 2026. Developer calls in the coming weeks may surface more details on testnet scheduling.

Reader Action Items

• Stay Informed on Foundation Dynamics: The Ethereum Foundation's organizational trajectory will influence protocol research priorities over the coming months. Follow EF-adjacent research blogs and the Ethereum Magicians forum for signals about how the remaining team is structuring ongoing work.
• Evaluate Your L2 Stack: With fresh mid-2026 TVL, fee, and security data now available for Arbitrum, Base, OP Mainnet, and zkSync Era, this is a good moment to review whether your current L2 selection still matches your risk/fee tolerance — particularly in light of evolving L2Beat security stage ratings.
• Explore Formal Verification Tools: Vitalik's endorsement of raw EVM + Lean and AI-assisted verification points to a maturing toolkit for smart contract security. Developers building high-value contracts should begin exploring formal verification options, even at an exploratory level, as the tooling is becoming more accessible.