Vitalik Buterin Donates $760K to Support Next-Gen Digital Privacy Projects

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has donated over $760,000 worth of ETH to two decentralized messaging platforms — Session and SimpleX Chat — which he believes are advancing the next stage of digital privacy. In a recent post on X, Buterin emphasized the importance of encrypted communication tools like Signal and highlighted the need for permissionless account creation and stronger metadata privacy across messaging apps.

Both platforms receiving the donation focus on removing traditional identifiers. Session allows users to communicate without phone numbers or central servers, while SimpleX Chat avoids assigning identifiable IDs altogether. Leaders of the two projects praised Buterin’s support, noting that regulatory pressure and technical challenges continue to threaten private communication. They stressed that decentralization is essential for preserving user freedom and data security.

Buterin also noted that achieving optimal user experience and security remains a challenge, especially as decentralized systems must defend against Sybil and DoS attacks without relying on phone numbers. Project founders said global awareness is now crucial, adding that users must understand they can enjoy “trustless privacy” without becoming products of big tech platforms. They emphasized that privacy is a fundamental right — one that decentralized messaging aims to protect.