Headline: Изменения в Leadership Ethereum Foundation: Томаш Станчак уходит, Бастиан Ауэ становится временным директором Translation: Changes in Leadership at Ethereum Foundation: Tomas Stanczak Departs, Bastian Aue Becomes Interim Director

Tomasz Stanczak has decided to step down from his position as co-executive director of the Ethereum Foundation (EF). Bastian Aue has temporarily assumed his role.

Stanczak took the lead of the organization alongside Xiao-Wei Wang in March 2025 following a restructuring of the management team.

He is the founder of the Ethereum client Nethermind and one of the early members of the Flashbots team.

Just a month after the new leadership was appointed, the EF announced a shift in focus towards user experience (UX) and first-layer blockchain scalability issues. The team also presented a streamlined roadmap for Ethereum with an emphasis on network performance.

In June, the organization reduced its staff of researchers and developers. The department, renamed from PR&D to Protocol, has concentrated on three main areas, according to a statement.

Former lead developer of the Geth client, Peter Siladji, linked his dismissal from EF to management’s efforts to separate the project into a distinct commercial division. Allegedly, the organization offered the team $5 million to transition into a private company. According to the programmer, this was part of plans to cease funding for Geth, allowing Nethermind to capture its market share over the years.

“During his year at EF, Tomasz significantly increased the efficiency of many divisions and transformed the foundation into an organization that responds more sensitively to the external world. He brought new energy, and thanks to his support and encouragement, EF regularly achieves success, stepping outside its previous comfort zone,” wrote Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin.

Stanczak stated that he intends to complete his departure from EF by the end of the month, and from March 1, he plans to develop his own Ethereum project. He also denied any connection between his decision and recent comments from Buterin regarding the relevance of L2 concepts. His stance was challenged by several community members.

“Stanczak is a unique talent and leader who has achieved more in one year than most might ever hope for. His exceptionally open mind has also inspired us all […] He will continue to participate in many successful projects within the ecosystem, and we look forward to his future contributions to Ethereum!” declared former EF CEO and president Aya Miyaguchi.

Buterin specifically noted that Stanczak «encouraged everyone» to adopt a new perspective on the possibilities of Ethereum in the field of artificial intelligence.

As a reminder, in February, the co-founder of the blockchain platform described its potential alliance with AI.