Author: Consensys

Translator: Felix, PANews

The 7th Ethereum Technology and Community Conference EthCC was held in Brussels, Belgium from July 8th to July 11th. The conference featured a total of 350 speakers. Consensys summarized the conference and presented five insights. The following is the full content.

This year's EthCC was special because Brussels hosted thousands of developers from around the world. As EthCC approached, there were ongoing lawsuits from the SEC, global regulations, and how to pave a clear development path for Web3 became the focus of attention. Despite occasional heavy rain, Brussels remained a great host city with beautiful natural scenery, high urban density, and venues, restaurants, and bars within walking distance.

Since we released the EthCC Recap in 2023, the Ethereum ecosystem has made significant progress. However, more work needs to be done to achieve the vision for the future. While discussions about regulations were not the primary focus of the conference, many exciting topics were discussed, including identity, L2 security, user privacy, better user experience, and the power and threats of AI.

Venue of EthCC 2024, Brussels

Here are the five key points of EthCC 2024. We hope that by this time next year, we will have made enough progress in these areas to maintain the enthusiasm of Web3 builders and encourage new adopters.

1. Web3 UX Still Needs Improvement, But Has Made Significant Progress

At the previous EthCC, most discussions focused on improving Web3 UX to better guide users. In fact, Vitalik's speech was titled "The History of Account Abstraction," in which he stated that account abstraction would drive the next wave of mass user adoption for Ethereum. This year's focus was different as we have made some progress in this area, with various teams launching their own smart contract account products.

A key highlight was Consensys releasing the alpha version of the MetaMask Delegation Toolkit through the Red Balloon Challenge, allowing users to enter Web3 games without the need for wallet extensions or applications, mnemonic phrases, or paying gas fees.

This shift tells us that we have transitioned from merely discussing improvements in Web3 UX to major participants building innovative solutions to address this issue. Teams such as Coinbase, ZeroDev, and Privy are all building and launching their own smart contract account products.

2. More Consumer Dapps Are the Next Key Requirement for Driving Web3 Adoption

If you read the summary of last year's EthCC, you will find that this is a recurring theme. Unfortunately, unlike the noticeable progress in Web3 UX, we have not seen progress in this area. It is widely known that for Web3 to attract the next billion users, there must be sufficiently attractive consumer dapps. Many are debating why this issue still exists.

Some believe that the root of the problem lies in the fact that funds primarily flow to infrastructure builders rather than consumer dapps, as the latter may exit more quickly. Others believe that the lack of regulatory transparency has led dapp developers to turn to infrastructure.

Regardless, Consensys is committed to addressing these issues. This is reflected in our lawsuit with the SEC in the United States, aimed at obtaining higher regulatory transparency, and our Scale program actively seeks and funds ecosystem builders.

3. Strengthening Collaboration Between Teams is Needed to Improve L2 Security and Transparency

The future of L2 rollups for Ethereum is no longer news. While we have seen many innovations around L2s, especially in zero-knowledge rollups, discussions on how to make the proof system more transparent were a common theme throughout the week.

The conference also emphasized the need for the Optimistic Rollup team to strengthen collaboration to improve anti-fraud mechanisms. Developers unanimously believe that existing solutions have issues and are susceptible to Sybil attacks, compromising the security, settlement speed, and decentralization of anti-fraud systems. This was a significant theme at EthCC this year, especially among blockchain security experts.

4. AI Will Unlock a New Dimension for Blockchain Dapps

Another key point is that the combination of AI and blockchain has tremendous potential to unlock new possibilities for dapps. Deep learning models excel at processing large amounts of data to identify patterns, make predictions, and achieve decision-making processes by utilizing neural networks that mimic human brain cognition. When combined with the transparent, decentralized, and censorship-resistant economic settlement layer of blockchain networks, this combination will achieve immutable data storage and minimal trust digital interactions.

A widely discussed use case is leveraging AI's data analysis capabilities to detect fraud and scams using the vast amount of data available on the blockchain, thereby enhancing security. However, we have not yet seen widespread application of AI in dapps. The integration of blockchain and AI can unlock entirely new business models, improve operational efficiency, help automate repetitive tasks, achieve more secure and efficient data exchange, enhance decision-making capabilities through AI-driven smart contracts, and increase overall trust and transparency in critical infrastructure and economic processes.

5. Never Underestimate the Role of Peripheral Activities in Community Building

This year, more people discussed the peripheral activities they attended rather than the main event. Could it be that the one-on-one contact with speakers and product teams makes peripheral activities more attractive? Consensys hosted over 12 peripheral activities this year, all filled with people interested in meeting and chatting with teams.

This is largely attributed to the geographical location of the city center of Brussels. It is very walkable, allowing attendees to easily move from one activity to another within a 2-minute walk. I don't think this fragmentation (as some call it) is a bad thing. Ethereum itself is permissionless, and I don't think it's as negative as some people say. However, there have been many suggestions to improve this on platform X and refocus attention on the main event.

Joe Lubin on stage at Consensys AVS Day event

See You at EthCC 2025 in Cannes, Web3 Builders

EthCC 2024 was a huge success. The diversity of group discussions and the increase in the number of female participants enriched the discussions, reflecting a more diverse and inclusive community.

Next year's EthCC will be held in Cannes, France. We look forward to new insights and innovations. As hinted by Vitalik, he has outlined a strong roadmap for Ethereum, emphasizing the necessity of its unique advantages and addressing its shortcomings.

As we continue to build and innovate, we remain committed to defining high standards for the Ethereum community and believe that we are on the right path to realizing a decentralized future.

Related reading: Review of EthCC 2024 Attendance Experience: Frustrations and Fun Coexist, Is Cannes Worth Looking Forward to?

免责声明：本文章仅代表作者个人观点，不代表本平台的立场和观点。本文章仅供信息分享，不构成对任何人的任何投资建议。用户与作者之间的任何争议，与本平台无关。如网页中刊载的文章或图片涉及侵权，请提供相关的权利证明和身份证明发送邮件到support@aicoin.com，本平台相关工作人员将会进行核查。