Ethereum Faces Critical Crossroads as Cardano's Hoskinson and Tron's Sun Weigh In

Debates on Ethereum’s Future Intensify Amid Layer-1 Upgrades and Community Rifts

Charles Hoskinson, the founder of Cardano, issued a stark warning about Ethereum’s future, predicting that the network could become obsolete within the next 10 to 15 years. Drawing a parallel to the downfall of BlackBerry and Myspace, Hoskinson criticized Ethereum’s foundational design, citing an outdated accounting model, an inefficient virtual machine, and a flawed consensus mechanism. He argued that Ethereum’s current proof-of-stake model is “not built for long-term success,” and emphasized that Layer 2 solutions are draining value away from the main chain rather than reinforcing it, potentially splintering the ecosystem in ways similar to BlackBerry’s demise. 

Recent data aligns with these concerns, showing that base-layer activity on Ethereum has collapsed, fees and network usage have fallen to multi-year lows, and Ether is no longer deflationary — undermining one of its primary value propositions. Institutions such as Galaxy Digital and Paradigm have also reportedly shifted their focus away from Ethereum toward platforms like Solana, further intensifying worries about Ethereum’s competitiveness. Despite these bearish indicators, some whales are quietly accumulating ETH, betting on a future recovery even as broader sentiment wavers.

Hoskinson’s remarks stirred tensions not only within the broader crypto community but also among Cardano supporters after he declared that Cardano had been "completed" following the expiration of its original 2015 contract with Input Output Global (IOG). He revealed he has worked without financial compensation since 2020 out of personal dedication to the project. Critics quickly pointed out that critical scalability features, including Hydra and Leios, have yet to be fully deployed on the mainnet, challenging Hoskinson’s assertion of project completion. 

Cardano’s original goal of achieving transaction throughput comparable to Solana’s 65,000 TPS remains unfulfilled, prompting community members to question how the project could be deemed complete. Hoskinson warned that without sustained funding, IOG developers might seek opportunities elsewhere and cautioned against efforts to push for competitive development bids, arguing it would force layoffs or outsourcing to lower-cost regions such as India or Eastern Europe — a move he is unwilling to make.

Adding another layer of complexity to Ethereum’s current narrative, Justin Sun, the founder of Tron, made a bold forecast that Ethereum could reach $5,000 within months, coinciding with the upcoming 10th anniversary of Ethereum’s launch on July 30, 2025. At the time of reporting, ETH was trading around $1,771, making Sun’s prediction an ambitious call. He tied the significance of Ethereum’s anniversary to his personal story, as his birthday falls on the same day. 

Sun laid out several strategic recommendations to bolster ETH’s price, including halting Ethereum Foundation’s ETH sales for three years to maintain token scarcity, leveraging platforms like AAVE for operational funding instead of selling ETH, restructuring the Foundation to prioritize top-tier developers with higher pay, and refocusing development efforts on enhancing Ethereum’s Layer 1 network rather than dispersing resources across various side projects. Meanwhile, the Ethereum Foundation has announced plans for global anniversary meetups, offering up to $500 reimbursements per event through its Ecosystem Support Program, with a funding application deadline set for June 15, 2025.

On the technical front, Ethereum’s developers are preparing for significant changes aimed at boosting network performance. The upcoming Pectra upgrade, scheduled for May 2025, is expected to substantially reduce gas fees and enhance smart contract enforcement. Additionally, a major proposal has been introduced under Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP) 9678, spearheaded by developer Sophia Gold, to raise the Layer 1 gas limit from approximately 36 million to 150 million as part of the Fusaka hard fork slated for late 2025. Tim Beiko, a key figure among Ethereum’s core developers, labeled the proposal a “priority,” emphasizing the need to coordinate client defaults to ensure a seamless upgrade process. 

While the proposed increase is aimed at scaling Layer 1 execution without introducing new features, developers acknowledge the heightened risk of exposing bugs in existing clients, necessitating comprehensive testing and fixes. Historically, Ethereum’s gas limit stood at 30 million in August 2021 before gradually rising to the current level, making this proposed jump one of the most ambitious scaling efforts for the network to date. Validators will retain control over the gas limit, but the formal EIP aims to encourage consistent adoption across clients, providing a coordinated path forward.

This article has been refined and enhanced by ChatGPT.