The Ethereum Foundation is testing a method for running validators that could make it significantly easier for institutions holding large amounts of ether to establish staking infrastructure, expand the pool of participants, and create a more decentralized network.
In a post on X, blockchain co-founder Vitalik Buterin said the fund is using a simplified version of distributed validation technology, or “DVT-lite,” to stake 72,000 ETH. The experiment aims to make it less complicated to run validators across multiple machines.
Buterin said the goal is to reduce the process to something close to a one-click setup, where operators choose which computers will run validator nodes, launch the software and enter the same key on each machine. The system will then automatically connect the nodes and start betting.
“My hope for this project is that we can make it maximally easy and one-click to do distributed efforts for institutions,” Buterin wrote.
Running Ethereum validators today typically means operating a single node that holds the key used to sign blocks and participate in the network. If this machine fails or goes offline, the validator may stop working and may be penalized.
Distributed Validation Technology (DVT) changes that by allowing multiple independent machines to collectively act as a single validator. Instead of relying on one key and one computer, multiple nodes work together and only a handful of them sign for the validator to work. This means that the validator can continue to work even if some machines crash.
However, existing DVT systems can be complicated to implement because operators must coordinate networks, keys and communications between nodes. Buterin has previously argued that complexity is one of the reasons why large betting providers have come to dominate the ecosystem.
The “DVT-lite” setup aims to automate much of this process, making it easier for institutions to run distributed validators with minimal infrastructure expertise.
Buterin said he plans to use the system himself and hopes that large ETH holders will adopt similar setups that help spread control of Ethereum’s staking infrastructure across multiple operators rather than concentrating it among a handful of professional providers.
“The idea that ‘operating infrastructure’ is this scary, complicated thing where every person involved has to be a ‘professional’ is terrible and anti-decentralization, and we must attack it head-on,” he wrote.
Read more: Vitalik Buterin Proposes Simpler ‘Distributed Validator’ Effort for Ethereum
