Vitalik Buterin Explains Blockchain Scaling Hierarchy

Vitalik Buterin has expressed a new architecture to describe the scaling of blockchains. He refers to scaling as hierarchy. He puts computation at the forefront and also puts data in the middle. Thus, he claims that not every component of a blockchain scales identically. Certain layers develop at a higher rate than others.

⚡️ LATEST: Vitalik Buterin outlines blockchain scaling hierarchy, says computation is easiest to scale, data is middle, state is hardest.

He recommends moving up the hierarchy where possible for better scaling. pic.twitter.com/gJvivNsAu8

— Cointelegraph (@Cointelegraph) January 27, 2026

Computation according to Vitalik scales the easiest. Tasks can be paralleled by developers. They are allowed to utilize zero-knowledge evidences. They are able to relieve their burdensome work to external systems. This means that networks are able to gain throughput without trust assumptions that may rise. Such a solution is already active with most Layer 2 systems.

Then Vitalik prioritizes the availability of data. He describes that data speeds lowly than computation. Nevertheless, it is not the best with improved techniques. As an illustration, Ethereum currently employs such tools as PeerDAS. These are data distribution tools. They minimize pressure of storage. Thus, more users can be supported by networks without losing decentralization.

State Remains the Hardest Problem

The bottom of the hierarchy is occupied by state. Vitalik tells the worst scale of the state. Every node must verify state. Full correctness is essential to every user. This makes state cumbersome and costly. Thus, when a state is large, hardware requirements are high. It is also prone to being centralized in the long run.

Due to this reason, Vitalik suggests that state should be reduced. State is being replaced with data or computation which he suggests. He refers to this as climbing up the hierarchy. Ethereum is already of this model. Rollups minimize on-chain state. Sharding spreads data. ZK systems minimize costs of execution.

Implications on Developers

Practically, this framework is used to inform future design. Unnecessary state should not be stored by developers. They ought to employ evidences rather than warehouses. They are supposed to move complexity out of the base layer. This means that blockchains are able to scale without breaking decentralization. The model by Vitalik provides a roadmap to the long term blockchain development.