Buterin reminds me a little of string theorists in physics. There is a lot of intellect but they have chosen to chase something that doesn't produce anything really useful despite a ton of effort.
https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/BOGMBASE
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Debasement
I think crypto solving this issue is definitely of value. How many wars were started by a government debasing their currency and having to start a war to fix it? I'd say a lot of them.
Bitcoin on the other hand, was a one time deal with the 21 million, but the original economics thought up by Satoshi was forever changed after the blocksize was constrained in 2017, and now, there’s a high risk that there won’t be enough transaction fees in the future to support Bitcoin, even with Lightning Network.
I am far from convinced that cryptocurrencies are actually a solution to this, but even if it is -- at what price? Not all solutions are worth the cost. I am not saying cryptocurrency would fail this test, but I am saying that it's a mistake to proceed without a genuine cost/benefit analysis.
that towards the end he says: but the only "practical" application is gaming financial markets, and proceeded to talk about his work in this area; or something like this, my memory is a bit vague. I remember feeling disappointment.