Ethereum's 'Dencun' Upgrade Goes Live on Second Testnet, With Just One Remaining
Next week, on Feb. 7, Dencun will go live on its final Ethereum testnet, Holesky. After that, developers will ink in a date to activate Dencun on the main blockchain.

Vitalik Buterin Says Developers Should 'Tread Carefully' Mixing Crypto and AI
The Ethereum co-founder has warmed up on the potential intersection between AI and crypto, though he warns developers to be careful.

As Blockchains Push Toward Decentralization, These People Serve as Ultimate Guardians
The goal of these "protocol councils,” sometimes called “security councils,” is to nudge these nascent networks toward increasing decentralization, by gradually removing them from under the control of their original developers. How are they different from boards of directors?

The Black Swan Event That Could Cause a Fork in Ethereum (Again)
A major potential risk to Ethereum was highlighted by a bug that surfaced in Nethermind, a minority execution client. While the bug was fixed quickly, it raised the question of what would happen to the blockchain if Geth, which is used by more than two-thirds of validators, had a bug. Ethereum developer Lefteris Karapetsas joined Unchained to discuss the different scenarios of what could happen and why he feels the incentive system is poorly designed.

Spot Ether ETF Applications Decisions Delayed by SEC
Grayscale and BlackRock are among the companies trying to bring spot ether ETFs to market.

Ethereum Developers Set Timeline for Final ‘Dencun’ Testnet Upgrades
Developers will run through Dencun on the Sepolia and Holesky testnets on Jan. 30 and Feb. 7, putting the upgrade on track to reach the main network in late February or early March.

Axiom, Protocol for Historical Ethereum Data, Raises $20M, Led by Paradigm, Standard Crypto
The funding will go towards further developing the protocol and adding new hires. Axiom allows smart contract developers to access historical data from Ethereum and then perform intensive computations off-chain.

Protocol Village: Syscoin Developer Expands Data-Availability Solution to Other Layer-2 Networks
The latest in blockchain tech upgrades, funding announcements and deals. For the period of Jan. 18-24.

The Protocol: Ethereum Developers Warn on 'Diversity Problem'
In this week's issue, a focus on Ethereum's "diversity problem," the week's biggest blockchain project upgrades and highlights from Electric Capital's annual report on developer activity. PLUS: We've got an exclusive interview with a top architect behind the XRP Ledger.
