EthCC kicked off today in Cannes under a blazing sun. As the first day brought major announcements, attendees are eagerly awaiting the arrival of Vitalik Buterin, Ethereum’s co-founder.
EthCC Cannes: Crypto in Full Swing
Lines began forming early in the morning under intense heat. Outside the Palais des Festivals, over 6,400 participants are expected over the four days of EthCC.
Inside, visitors braved the aging air conditioning, which did little to cool the upper floors as temperatures climbed.
The conference opened with a unifying statement from Jérôme de Tychet, President of Ethereum France:
“EthCC has always been open to anyone who wants to contribute,” emphasizing Ethereum’s strong community focus.
ZK-Rollups, MPC, Staking: Ethereum Flexes Its Tech Muscles
The morning sessions dove deep into Ethereum’s most technical aspects. Roger Taulé from Polygon Labs explained how proof aggregation can reduce computational load in virtual machines.
Meanwhile, Leonardo Bautista Gomez of Codex announced major improvements in blob management to boost Ethereum’s transaction throughput.
Tomasz Stanczak of the Ethereum Foundation outlined the organization’s long-term vision, emphasizing more users and greater resilience. Mohsen Ahmadvand from Zircuit shared a similar ambition, presenting a method to optimize rollup costs.
Decentralization and Security: The Ecosystem Grows
In the afternoon, several major announcements were made. Yehuda Lindell from Coinbase unveiled an open-source MPC library aimed at enhancing security across the sector.
Dima Gusakov of Lido advocated for a more inclusive approach:
“It’s no longer just for geeks. We want the community to secure Ethereum while being rewarded.”
With the launch of Lido V3, institutions can now stake at scale while maintaining liquidity via stETH.
This inclusive vision of Ethereum is also echoed by Stani Kulehoc from Aave Labs, who noted:
“It’s about making the value from traditional finance programmable and accountable,” highlighting the potential of DeFi.
Karaoke and Networking: The Crowd Awaits Vitalik
The day ended on a lighter note with a karaoke room and a nap area available for attendees. Developers, VCs, and builders took a brief break from slides to enjoy some music and relaxation.
While side-events continue at a fast pace, the audience is primarily waiting for one key figure: Vitalik Buterin.
Although the exact time of his arrival is not yet confirmed, he is scheduled to appear on the Monroe Stage on July 2 at 11:40 AM. In previous keynotes, he has always outlined the network’s major directions.
This year, with Layer 2 solutions gaining significant traction, his appearance is more anticipated than ever.
