Vitalik Buterin Donates $765K in Ethereum to Privacy Messaging Apps
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin donated about $765,000 in ETH to privacy messaging apps Session and SimpleX, which aim to rival dominant platforms like Signal and Telegram. Buterin emphasized the importance of encrypted messaging for digital privacy, specifically highlighting permissionless account creation and metadata privacy as key advancements. Session and SimpleX both offer decentralized, end-to-end encrypted messaging and focus on minimizing metadata exposure and enhancing user-controlled identities, respectively. Buterin acknowledged both apps have room for improvement in user experience and security, citing challenges like decentralization, multi-device support, and resistance to Sybil/DoS attacks without requiring phone numbers. Interest in privacy-focused apps and crypto projects has risen amid increased government surveillance, digital ID proposals, and new content-scanning laws in Europe. The Ethereum Foundation has expanded its privacy initiatives, and privacy-related tokens like Zcash have seen significant gains over the past year.
