Protocols and decentralized applications around decentralized file storage, decentralized computation and decentralized prediction markets, among dozens of other such concepts, have the potential to substantially increase the efficiency of the computational industry, and provide a massive boost to other peer-to-peer protocols by adding for the first time an economic layer
I believe blockchain technology is important and I think Ethereum is a strong contribution in its own right. But the more I read of Vitalik's Sokal-style writing the more I wish he would stop and let others handle it because he is making it sound like he's going to scam the shit out of everybody.
The question for Ethereum, like any technology, is what real-world problem is it uniquely suited to solve? Personally, I don't think Ethereum will ever live up to the hype surrounding it because its founders have promised more than it can deliver.
Computation: pretty much the whole point of the Ethereum VM, plus there are a couple projects that put proofs on the blockchain of larger computations than the blockchain can handle.
Prediction markets: Gnosis and Augur
Efficiency: at least developer efficiency, in my experience
Economic layer: because you have reliable currencies on the network, both ETH and roll-your-own.
It might sound like buzzwords but at this point it's all real code.
Real code that doesn't provide the stated advantages doesn't mean much, right?
I have long-term hopes that decentralized currencies let us build some interesting products, but there's massive volatility against fiat when holding crypto, which makes it hard most people to want to use these auxiliary services
But it doesn't say "computational efficiency." It's talking about efficiency of the industry, which is a completely different thing.
As a developer, I have various ideas for startups that would handle money. The easiest way to implement them is to build on Ethereum.