Bitmine, Sharplink and Joe Lubin back Ethereum R&D nonprofit
Bitmine, Sharplink, Joe Lubin, and other Ethereum contributors have funded Ethlabs, a new nonprofit R&D group focused on making Ethereum ready for institutional adoption. Ethlabs was co-founded by five former senior Ethereum Foundation researchers and is intended to provide a long-term, independent home for core protocol work with stable funding. The group says Ethereum is becoming the settlement layer for stablecoins, tokenized assets, funds, and AI-driven commerce, and needs infrastructure that can handle that demand at scale. Lubin said Ethereum is entering a new phase and needs multiple steward organizations to help expand network usage. The launch comes amid growing concern about Ethereum Foundation funding, including warnings of a “slow-burning funding crisis” and several recent departures from the Foundation.
