Vitalik Buterin predicts 2026 as a return to self-sufficient computing

Vitalik Buterin predicts 2026 as a return to self-sufficient computing

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin believes that 2026 will be a key milestone in the development of technology itself, when people will start to return to decentralized, open-source and privacy-preserving tools. In a recent post on the social network X, he described how his personal digital habits are changing towards greater self-sufficiency and less dependence on large corporations.

Changes in software equipment for greater privacy

Buterin announced that in 2025 he will switch to a decentralized platform Fileverse, which replaces traditional cloud services and offers secure, open-source documents similar to Google Docs, but with privacy. He also began to prefer Signal as his main communication app, because it provides end-to-end encryption and minimizes metadata – for example, only the date of account creation or last connection. By contrast, Telegram, which offers encryption only in “secret chats,” still stores most of its data on its own servers, which is problematic in the context of increasing government surveillance.

2026: More self-sufficient and decentralized

Buterin has already abandoned some services from large corporations, for example, switching from Google Maps to OpenStreetMap and from Gmail to Proton Mail. He is also experimenting with locally hosting artificial intelligence - running language models directly on his own hardware is now more manageable than before, he says. However, he admits that there is still work to be done on the interface and efficiency to be fully user-friendly.

A shift in the perception of privacy

Buterin’s vision reflects a broader trend that privacy advocates like Naomi Brockwell support. She points out that running AI on a local device is the safest way to preserve privacy, as it minimizes data sharing with third parties. She believes that privacy is primarily a matter of autonomy, not secrecy – and that tools like encrypted messengers or decentralized platforms should be used to give people more control over their data.

This shift comes at a time when the debate over government interference in private communications is heating up. Proposals to scan encrypted messages or introduce content controls have raised concerns about trust in encrypted apps and user rights.

Conclusion

According to Buterin, 2026 will mark a return to technologies that are less dependent on large corporations and more on privacy and self-sufficiency. Users will start investing more in decentralized, open-source tools to regain control of their data and privacy. And this could be a step towards greater autonomy in the digital world.

*This is not an investment recommendation.

The Coingarage Team