Last week, I suspected that Vitalik's X account might have been hacked when I saw a post featuring a meme of a bull with a tag around its neck that boldly read, ‘Ethereum is good’.

Vitalik succumbed to popular requests to be less philosophical on his X account. But this ‘experiment’ lasted for just one day.

If you're a non-technical person following Vitalik on X, you might find that his articles, no matter how lengthy, often leave you feeling less informed than when you began reading.

You can't really blame Vitalik, given that he's a core developer, but this can shape the perceptions of everyone from crypto natives to degens and non-crypto natives alike.

Does the Ethereum Ecosystem Need More Memes?

Mobs on X often claim "Ethereum is dead" without referencing any data. However, a closer look at the charts tells a different story.

Take a look at the charts 👇🏽

• More than two-thirds of all the money (liquidity) in the world of DeFi is on the Ethereum blockchain. This shows most people trust and use  Ethereum heavily despite the meme coin craze.

• An average of 6 million active wallets have interacted with Ethereum L2 chains over the last 3 months.

Could it be that Ethereum attracts a more technically savvy audience, grounded in the institutional side of DeFi? Ethereum has seen a 1500% increase in researchers, which is necessary to fuel innovation and long-term growth. But if mass adoption is also key, using memes and other degen marketing approaches could be an effective strategy to engage a broader audience.

Analyzing Vitalik's Shit Post

Vitalik's shit post was a hit, attracting over 3 million views. This shows an increase of over 604% compared to the average viewers of his previous three posts.

For many who came across the post, it served as a reminder—especially for meme coin traders who may have momentarily forgotten about Ethereum's presence in the ecosystem.

This is a good sort of reawakening. Not necessarily trying to prove any point (even though the charts have done so) but basically to simplify Ethereum's educational workflow.

Imagine if every time a major project launched on Ethereum, Vitalik or another thought leader in the ecosystem shared a lighthearted post like this, clearly explaining its value to the average person. Views would spike, more conversations would unfold, and non-crypto natives would better understand and use Ethereum, realizing there's a place for them in the space.

It doesn’t have to be a meme, but rather a simple, non-technical explanation that a 5-year-old could understand. Take the Solana space, for example—when they introduced ZK compression, a technology different from Layer 2 solutions that works on Layer 1 to improve scalability and reduce costs.

Mert, a Solana developer, explained ZK compression without using technical jargon. This helped clarify things for many, despite ongoing debates—particularly from the Ethereum community—about whether it was a Layer 2 upgrade or not. Nonetheless, it effectively communicated Solana's position on ZK compression.

Shit Posts Are Fertile Grounds for Virality

One reason why posts like Vitalik’s recent one are great for going viral is that people can easily reuse and share the meme. Indirectly shit posts are viral loops that can bring in many good things.

In the Web3 space, some of the most successful communities have been built around memes. To stand out, it’s important to be strategic about using them. The memes should strongly tie to the community they represent.

Final Notes

• A nontechnical person who is also a non crypto native may find Vitalik’s X account boring and unrelatable. Shit posting once in a while could go a long way to reduce such perceptions.

• Vitalik recently stated that he has never seen the need to hire a ghostwriter for any of his accounts. So should we just expect more technical jargon and a sprinkle of memes and simple posts, once in a gazillion years?

• Researchers are essential for building and improving an ecosystem as robust as Ethereum. However, it's equally important to provide resources for the general public, who are the larger group and the intended end users.