Vitalik Buterin: perfect nerd

It is a thankless task to discuss Buterin. There isn't a single news website that doesn't bring up his name at least once every 2-3 days. It seems that we are aware of every step he takes in promoting Ethereum. The media is constantly reporting on what he has said in the past, what he plans to say in the future, and even what he has remained silent about. Vitalik frequently and willingly speaks at crypto conferences and gives journalists interviews. He personally runs his social networks and actively interacts with his followers there. However, Vitalik almost never discusses personal matters.

We decided to find information about Vitalik Buterin's childhood and family, as well as his interests and flaws that are not covered by the news. To accomplish this, we listened to several dozen of his interviews and gathered information that is not related to Ethereum piece by piece.

Vitalik was born in the Russian town of Kolomna in 1994 to a programmer and a housewife. His parents immigrated to Canada when he was six years old.

Favorite subject in school: Mathematics. However, not a single Canadian teacher has been able to handle Buterin's peculiar way of thinking. The only person Vitalik enjoyed listening to was a private math tutor who was an immigrant from Odesa. He had tutoring once per week for six years.

Childhood favorite computer game: Excel. He was fond of making new formulas. He used a computer for the first time when he was 4 years old.

Favorite computer game in his youth: World of Warcraft. Even now, he continues to play it. Although he first developed a resistance to centralization in WoW, when the Cataclysm update in 2010 deprived his character of all achievements earned in Wrath of the Lich King. That was a major shock that Vitalik struggled to recover from for a while. Then it was decided that his video games would be decentralized if he started making them.

Vitalik Buterin as a kid. Source: beincrypto

Most hated activity as a child: Piano lessons. Three years were spent trying to instill in Vitalik a love of music, but he resisted valiantly and ultimately crushed his parents' hope of seeing him on stage wearing a tailcoat. 

Attitude towards sports: Positive. Vitalik walks and occasionally swims, so he considers himself to be an energetic person. He went skiing several times as a child. He believes that's more than enough.

First money earned: Copywriting. Vitalik wrote articles for developer websites in 2011. He was paid 5 BTC for each article (the exchange rate was between $9 and $13 at the time). The future billionaire spent his first salary on buying a Pokemon T-shirt.

Closest friend: Mom. In addition to being Vitalik's friend, Natalia Ameline is also his business partner. She tries to accompany him on trips and even has the title “Mrs. Blockchain,” which was bestowed upon her by Ethereum Foundation employees.  Natalia runs crypto-educational initiatives for third-world students and schoolchildren.  She also founded CryptoChicks to support promising digital projects. These projects are funded by the Ethereum Charitable Foundation.

Natalia Ameline, Vitalik Buterin's mother, Source: coindesk

Primary residence: Singapore. Vitalik bought a small, secluded house on one of the islands and equipped it with high-tech devices for calm and efficient coding. Only his parents come to the island to see him. If there is a need to work together with the project team, Buterin then flies to San Francisco, where he also has a small house that serves as a remote office or hostel for Ethereum employees.

Who explained cryptocurrencies: His father, Dmitry Buterin. His career in software development was successful, but he is now engaged in photography and organizing philanthropy for Ukraine through Gate.org and UkraineDAO. Dmitry avoids any kind of publicity. He describes himself as a “half-retired” man.

Vitaliy and Dmitry Buterin. Source: vimbuzz

Relationships: No. Vitalik allegedly had affairs with Bloomberg journalist Camila Russo, who wrote the book “The Infinite Machine” about him. However, they broke up after the book was published. Their meetings were most likely devoted solely to discussing the specifics of the upcoming book. Vitalik admits that he receives a lot of letters from girls, but so far he is more interested in Ethereum scaling problems and charity work.

Camila Russo. Source: YouTube

Favorite foods: Vegetables and fruits. Vitalik Buterin prefers vegetarian food but does not limit himself to rigid limits. If he has no other options, he can easily eat fast food.

Favorite car: No. Buterin does not have a driver's license and does not own a car. He prefers to move around the city by taxi or underground trains. Sometimes his friends and co-workers give him a ride.

Preferred languages: English and Chinese. He knows Russian. You may have also seen the famous video in which Vitalik confidently listed all the months of the year in Ukrainian. Crypto guys from Ukraine made a meme out of it called “Months in which my portfolio was in drawdown.”

University: He dropped out of the first year of the University of Waterloo (Ontario, Canada) and does not have a diploma of higher education.

Favorite clothing style: Casual. Vitalik has never been seen in a suit and tie. The most businesslike style for him is a white shirt and jeans. Some consider Buterin to be extravagant. But he appears to be the type of person who doesn't care if he has style or not. The most important thing is to feel comfortable.

Favorite leisure activities: Programming and traveling. And he can do it all at the same time.

Why does he never use Vitalii instead of Vitalik when introducing himself?

This question has yet to be answered.

And, to be honest, we kind of envy him. Perhaps because he does not envy anyone and lives as he pleases.