Ethereum Foundation restarts developer recruitment to boost innovation and compete with Bitcoin

The Ethereum Foundation has relaunched its Ethereum Protocol Fellowship (EPF7) program in 2026 after a period of budget austerity, aiming to attract talented developers to strengthen its ecosystem. With 18 grants awarded in early 2026, the initiative focuses on core projects like security, cryptography, and protocol improvements to enhance Ethereum's scalability and adoption. This move is part of Ethereum's strategy to maintain technological leadership and possibly challenge Bitcoin's dominance by 2028-2030 through innovations such as zero-knowledge proofs and layer 2 solutions. The success of this program could be pivotal in shaping the future of blockchain technology and decentralized applications.