Helius CEO Mert: Decentralization does not equal disorganization; zero coordination cost is equivalent to centralization.

According to ChainCatcher, Mert, CEO of Helius, the infrastructure for Solana development, stated in an article on the X platform that decentralization is essentially "coordination without a central authority." If the cost of coordination is close to zero, then it is actually centralized; if the cost of coordination is infinitely high, then it cannot be technically called decentralized because the system will not function properly. Mert illustrated this point with a thought experiment: Suppose there exists a highly decentralized blockchain with hundreds of thousands of nodes running at home, distributed mining power, and token supply. He then proposed another extreme assumption—if North Korea could transfer funds from wallet A to wallet B within time T, this would be equivalent to the chain simultaneously detonating nuclear weapons in most countries worldwide. Finally, assuming the blockchain could successfully freeze the funds in wallet A through a fork without causing mass casualties, would this blockchain truly be considered decentralized? Mert argues that although humans can coordinate due to the shared incentive of "not dying," this does not mean the chain is "unorganized." Decentralization is still essentially "coordination without a central authority."