Ethereum's Vitalik Buterin proposes AI 'stewards' to help reinvent DAO governance
Analysis
Price Impact
MedVitalik's proposals for dao governance could lead to increased participation and efficiency, which might indirectly benefit eth by making the ethereum ecosystem more attractive and robust. however, the direct price impact on eth itself is likely to be moderate as it's a governance improvement rather than a direct protocol upgrade impacting transaction fees or network security.
Trustworthiness
HighVitalik buterin is a co-founder of ethereum and a highly influential figure in the crypto space. his proposals are generally well-researched and carry significant weight within the community. the technical details involving zkps, mpc, and tees are established cryptographic concepts, lending credibility to the proposal.
Price Direction
BullishImproved dao governance can lead to a more efficient and attractive ecosystem, fostering innovation and adoption on ethereum. this increased utility and demand for the network could positively influence eth's price in the long term. the focus on addressing current issues like low participation and centralization is a positive step for the network's sustainability.
Time Effect
LongImplementing such a sophisticated governance system would take a considerable amount of time, involving research, development, testing, and community adoption. therefore, the full impact of this proposal on ethereum and its price is expected to be seen over the long term, likely years, rather than immediate market reactions.
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Web3 Share Share this article Copy link X icon X (Twitter) LinkedIn Facebook Email Ethereum's Vitalik Buterin proposes AI 'stewards' to help reinvent DAO governance The system would use zero-knowledge proofs and secure environments (MPC/TEEs) to protect voter identity and sensitive data while preventing coercion and bribery. By Francisco Rodrigues , AI Boost | Edited by Aoyon Ashraf Feb 21, 2026, 7:21 p.m. Make us preferred on Google What to know : Buterin proposed deploying individual AI models trained on users' values to automate voting on thousands of DAO decisions, addressing low participation and voter delegation to large token holders. The system would use zero-knowledge proofs and secure environments (MPC/TEEs) to protect voter identity and sensitive data while preventing coercion and bribery. Prediction markets would incentivize quality proposals and filter out spam, while AI agents flag only critical issues for human review, automating routine governance participation. Ethereum cofounder Vitalik Buterin proposed a technical overhaul of decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs), calling for the use of personal artificial intelligence agents to privately cast votes on behalf of users and help scale digital governance. The plan, published on social media platform X one month after Buterin criticized DAOs for drifting into low participation and power centralization, aims to shift users away from delegating votes to large token holders. STORY CONTINUES BELOW Don't miss another story. Subscribe to the The Protocol Newsletter today . See all newsletters Sign me up By signing up, you will receive emails about CoinDesk products and you agree to our terms & conditions and privacy policy . Instead, individuals would deploy their own AI model, trained on their past messages and stated values, to vote on the thousands of decisions DAOs face. “There are many thousands of decisions to make, involving many domains of expertise, and most people don't have the time or skill to be experts in even one, let alone all of them.” Buterin wrote. “So what can we do? We use personal LLMs to solve the attention problem.” First is privacy of content, ensuring sensitive data remains confidential. AI agents would operate within secure environments such as multi-party computation (MPC) or trusted execution environments (TEEs), enabling them to process private data without leaking it to the public blockchain. Second is the anonymity of the participant. Buterin called for the use of zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs), a cryptographic tool that allows users to prove they’re eligible to vote without revealing their wallet address or how they voted. This guards against coercion, bribery, and whale watching, where smaller voters mimic the decisions of large token holders. These AI stewards would automate routine governance participation and flag only key issues for human review. To filter out low-quality or spammy proposals, an emerging problem as generative AI floods open forums, Buterin suggests launching prediction markets. In these, agents could bet on the likelihood that proposals would be accepted. Good bets would earn payouts, incentivizing valuable contributions while penalizing noise. Buterin also called for privacy-preserving tools such as multi-party computation and trusted execution environments, enabling AI agents to assess sensitive data, such as job applications or legal disputes, without exposing it on a public blockchain. Read more: From 2016 hack to $150M Endowment: the DAO’s second act focuses on Ethereum security Vitalik Buterin Dao governance AI Disclaimer: Parts of this article were generated with the assistance from AI tools and reviewed by our editorial team to ensure accuracy and adherence to our standards . For more information, see CoinDesk's full AI Policy . More For You The hardware hurdle: Cysic and Cardano clash over the future of decentralized compute By Olivier Acuna | Edited by Jamie Crawley Feb 17, 2026 At Consensus Hong Kong 2026, Leo Fan questioned Midnight’s use of Google Cloud and Azure, as Charles Hoskinson justifies hyperscaler partnerships. What to know : At Consensus Hong Kong 2026, Cysic founder Leo Fan warned that blockchain projects relying heavily on hyperscalers like Google Cloud and Microsoft Azure risk recreating single points of failure that undermine crypto’s decentralization ethos. Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson defended partnerships with major cloud providers for the Midnight privacy-focused network, arguing that global, privacy-preserving systems require hyperscaler-level compute while cryptography and confidential computing protect underlying data. The debate between Hoskinson and Fan centers on how to define decentralization, with Hoskinson prioritizing cryptographic neutrality over hardware ownership and Fan urging a hybrid model that limits reliance on Big Tech and extends decentralization to the compute layer itself. 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