Eric Conner, a prominent core developer at Ethereum, has left the ecosystem community after a nearly 11-year association, citing network co-founder Vitalik Buterin’s rejection of a leadership shake-up proposal.

Conner co-authored EIP-1559, the major network change that changed how transaction fees worked on Ethereum. He is not officially employed by Ethereum, but has advised, invested, and been among those leading the charge for ecosystem growth since its early days.

Conner is joining AI-focused protocol Fresya.AI, he said in a follow-up X post.

Buterin slammed calls to change the management structure of the Ethereum Foundation, which oversees the development of the second-largest blockchain by market capitalization.

Buterin said on X that he will create a “board” to manage the fund, but until then he is the manager. Buterin’s comment came amid calls from ecosystem stakeholders for a change in the network’s leadership, with founding member Anthony Donofrio opining that the blockchain has gone astray.

The network also plans to roll out its Pectra upgrade, which promises speed efficiency and other improvements, in March.