Vitalik Buterin Responds to the Critics of Centralization in Ethereum

Vitalik Buterin, co-founder of Ethereum, has published a new article on his blog criticizing its centralization. In it, Buterin outlines key problems and offers potential solutions. In response to a series of posts by Geth core client developer Peter Szilagyi on Page X, Buterin delved into the main problems that Szilagyi believes could lead to the centralization of the network. 
Szilagyi's concerns centered around three main issues: MEV (Miner Extractable Value), liquid staking, and the high hardware requirements to run a node. Szilagyi argued that Ethereum is slowly becoming a traditional financial system with intermediaries and private ownership.
Solving the MEV Problem
Buterin identified two main approaches to solving the MEV problem: minimization and quarantine. Minimization involves developing protocols that eliminate loopholes for such bots, such as Cowswap and encrypted memepools. Quarantine is a more radical approach in which roles in block processing are distributed. Specific participants choose the contents of the blocks using an auction, which reduces the impact of MEVs. 
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This concept, known as Propeller-Builder Separation (PBS), has its drawbacks, such as the risk of malicious actions. To counter this, Buterin proposed the use of inclusion lists, in which proposers create a list of transactions to be included in a block. The block creators then organize these transactions but must include transactions from the list. Buterin believes that this approach, despite its complexities, is necessary.
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Tackling the Problem of Liquid Stacking
Buterin, who has done extensive research on the topic, still supports the idea of single-stacking, which is fundamental to Ethereum. However, the ecosystem faces a number of challenges, such as:
32 ETH threshold for validator activation.
High requirements for node operators.
Loss of Ethereum (ETH) availability, security risks, and inability to participate in DeFi protocols simultaneously.
Developers have taken steps to address these issues, including the “Werkle trees” concept introduced in the Dencun update. Werkle trees reduce the storage requirements of nodes, increasing network efficiency. 
Buterin also mentioned other measures to support decentralized stub funds and reduce validator requirements. He mentioned the possibility of reducing ETH stub fund withdrawal times and lowering the minimum deposit by increasing the stub fund period, although these adjustments depend on the economics of the process. Ultimately, Buterin emphasized that user behavior is crucial. If users delegate staking responsibilities out of convenience, centralization problems will persist due to the popularity of staking providers.
Hardware Requirements for Validators
According to Buterin, implementing Werkle trees and EIP-4444 can reduce node storage to 100 GB or less. However, this leads to a dilemma: if intermediaries are involved in validating the state and providing evidence, doesn't this indicate centralization? 
An alternative would be a peer-to-peer network for storing Ethereum's state history. Buterin acknowledged that such a project exists but does not meet current blockchain standards. He envisions a “universal node” running on a high-end consumer laptop.
Conclusion
Buterin agreed with Szilagyi that Ethereum has deviated from its 2021 vision but stressed that the network is moving towards decentralization and gradually addressing some of the issues outlined.