Key Takeaways
- Recent AWS outages highlight the cryptocurrency industry’s significant reliance on centralized cloud infrastructure, as noted by Xen Baynham-Herd of Base.
- Achieving a truly decentralized infrastructure comparable to centralized services could take years, drawing parallels to Ethereum’s developmental timeline.
- Base is actively seeking to attract more Web2 developers to its ecosystem, aiming to foster broader adoption and innovation.
Recent AWS Outage Underscores Centralization Concerns
A widespread Amazon Web Services (AWS) outage recently disrupted numerous internet services, including prominent platforms like Coinbase, Reddit, Hulu, and Xbox. This incident served as a stark reminder of the persistent dependency of even advanced digital platforms on centralized infrastructure.
Xen Baynham-Herd, Head of Global Builders at Base, speaking at Zebu Live in London, noted that the AWS outage brought into sharp focus the cryptocurrency industry’s ongoing journey toward its core goal of decentralization.
💡 While Base experienced minimal disruption, Baynham-Herd acknowledged the broader implications for the crypto ecosystem’s reliance on centralized cloud providers.
“It obviously had an impact across the internet,” he stated.
“I think crypto should become more decentralized and less reliant upon centralized servers,” Baynham-Herd added. “There are a number of crypto projects working on that. We’ve not got there yet, so I think it’s a goal.”
Lessons from Ethereum’s Evolution
Baynham-Herd shared his perspective that the development of truly decentralized infrastructure is a long-term endeavor, likely spanning several years. He drew a parallel between this projected timeline and Ethereum’s decade-long evolution towards widespread adoption.
“At every point, Ethereum could have made decisions to be more centralized in order to scale faster, and they didn’t,” he explained. “Because of that, we now have the benefit of people building on Ethereum because it’s decentralized and has a strong track record.”
“Judging by the growth of Ethereum, how long it took people to build on that, I think it’ll be years until we see decentralized AWS really go big. But I think we’ll get there eventually.”
Base’s Mission: Building an Open Global Economy
The drive towards widespread decentralization is a foundational principle for Base, according to Baynham-Herd.
“The values of Base are building an open global economy — one that increases innovation, creativity and freedom. And part of that is being open,” he said.
He further emphasized, “It means being open to other chains, other ecosystems, other types of users.”
Baynham-Herd described Base as acting as “a bridge, not an island,” highlighting its commitment to an inclusive, cross-chain approach.
Last call for the Startup Track.
Base Batches 002 applications are open, and today’s the final day for startups to apply. The top 40 teams get flown to Demo Day at @EFDevcon to pitch VCs, angels, and accelerators.
Who’s ready to build? pic.twitter.com/OzYynejVl0
— Base (@base) October 17, 2025
The Base global builder initiative has experienced substantial growth since Baynham-Herd joined in January.
“We’ve hired specific people in over 16 countries around the world who are dedicated to being on the ground and growing that builder ecosystem,” Baynham-Herd shared. “The culture is very much around building real utility and real long-term use cases.”
The Base Batches program, which functions as a global build-a-thon that evolved into an accelerator, has attracted significant interest, with thousands of applications, he reported.
This initiative is set to conclude with a demo day in Buenos Aires on November 17, followed by new founder residencies in Kenya and Malaysia.
Attracting Web2 Developers
Baynham-Herd also highlighted a growing trend of Web2 developers becoming involved in the Base ecosystem.
“At our hackathons we’re seeing a mix of developers who have never tried using crypto before, as well as existing on-chain developers,” he observed.
Base is actively encouraging Web2 developers to explore the opportunities within crypto, particularly focusing on novel functionalities that were previously unattainable.
“For example, Web2 developers interested in AI are coming to crypto because they see an opportunity to add a wallet to an agent using agent kit, or do payments online on web using a protocol,” he told CCN. “This enables very easy payments across the web with a couple of lines of code.”
He anticipates that this interest from Web2 developers will continue to expand significantly over time.
Final Thoughts
The recent AWS outage has amplified discussions around the crypto industry’s reliance on centralized infrastructure. Base, through its growth initiatives and focus on attracting Web2 developers, is contributing to the broader movement towards decentralization, though significant advancement is expected to take time.