Ethereum’s Neglect of Layer 2s: Polygon and Sonic Labs Hit Back

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The Ethereum ecosystem is at it again, like a dysfunctional family at Thanksgiving, but this time, the beef is about layer 2 developers. Senior builders are openly accusing the Ethereum Foundation of giving them the cold shoulder. Gasp! 😱

Here’s the Drama:

  • Polygon‘s Sandeep Nailwal is pretty upset-he says Ethereum Foundation gives zero support to Polygon.
  • Sonic Labs’ Andre Cronje is singing the same tune. Not one to miss a gossip session.
  • Vitalik Buterin, Ethereum’s poster child, praises both Polygon and Nailwal for their “amazing” contributions. No surprise there, he’s a bit of a fanboy.

So, Polygon’s co-founder, Sandeep Nailwal, is losing his patience. He’s been loyal to Ethereum for years but says the Ethereum Foundation has given them zero love. Yep, despite Polygon being a major player in scaling Ethereum. Talk about being the cool cousin who’s always left out of family photos! 😒

On October 21, Nailwal posted on X, throwing shade at the Ethereum (ETH) community for completely ignoring Polygon’s layer 2 status, even though it’s been powering some of the biggest Ethereum apps. Apparently, all that effort has gone unnoticed. Classic. 🙄

Nailwal’s Hot Take: Ethereum is Basically a VIP Club

According to Nailwal, Polygon’s ecosystem is all about Ethereum-networks like Katana and XLayer are still very much connected to it. Yet, he feels the Ethereum community treats Polygon’s progress like it’s a separate entity. Ouch. He even said that Polygon’s market value could be “two to five times higher” if it stopped pretending to be Ethereum’s sidekick and went solo. 💸

“Read this from Peter and realized that it’s time for me to also speak up. NGL, I’ve started questioning my loyalty toward Ethereum. I did not come into crypto because of Bitcoin but because of Ethereum. I also have a lot of gratitude toward @VitalikButerin – someone I looked up…”

– Sandeep | CEO, Polygon Foundation (@sandeepnailwal) October 20, 2025

Oh, and just in case you thought this was a one-man rant, Nailwal’s outburst is part of a much bigger conversation within Ethereum. Developers are all huddling and wondering if the Ethereum Foundation is really doing enough to support the people who are actually building stuff. The plot thickens. 🕵️‍♂️

Enter Sonic’s Andre Cronje: “I’ve Been Robbed!”

Not one to be left out, Andre Cronje, co-founder of Sonic Labs, decided to join the “Ethereum Foundation, where’s my support?” club. He’s straight-up salty, saying he’s “burned over 700 ETH” building on Ethereum, and got absolutely nothing in return-not even a simple retweet. Like, not even a pity “good job” comment. Where’s the love, Ethereum? 😩

“I am confused. So who is EF paying/supporting? While building on ETH I have burned over 700 ETH on deployments and ETH infra. I tried contacting EF, never a response, no BD outreach, no grants, 0 support, not even a retweet. When I started helping out with Sonic eco I was…”

– Andre Cronje (@AndreCronjeTech) October 21, 2025

Cronje’s experience is like a cautionary tale, warning us all that there’s a “special treatment” happening in the Ethereum ecosystem. Newer projects under the Sonic (S) umbrella? They’re getting cash, attention, and all sorts of goodies. So yeah, Cronje’s not having it. 👀

Vitalik Buterin: The Mediator

Vitalik Buterin, the Ethereum co-founder and the internet’s favorite crypto philosopher, swooped in to save the day. He thanked Nailwal and Polygon for their “valuable” contributions to the Ethereum ecosystem, especially their work with zero-knowledge tech. And let’s not forget, Polygon’s attempt to use the AggLayer framework to scale Ethereum was “admirable.”

Vitalik even threw in some praise for Nailwal’s charitable side-his work with the Balvi biotech program and CryptoRelief. Apparently, he’s doing good in the world of crypto and beyond. Hero status? Check. 🙌

But, just when we thought the drama was over, Vitalik hinted that Polygon might integrate with Ethereum’s main chain in the future. So, there’s hope for a future bromance, despite all the shade being thrown around now. 💪

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2025-10-21 08:43