Once-hyped Ethereum rival Harmony wants to shut its blockchain over AI threats
The Harmony blockchain project has proposed a voluntary shutdown of its network, citing insurmountable security threats from state actors and AI agents. The plan involves migrating existing token holders to Ethereum via an airdrop while pivoting the project's remaining resources toward an AI-focused video creation platform.
Why it matters
This move represents a rare and significant case of a major blockchain project choosing a controlled sunset over a slow decline, highlighting the growing security pressures facing decentralized networks.
"The threats posed by state actors and AI agents are too great," the project wrote on X on Sunday. "Since our mainnet launch in 2019, our community has been resilient through attacks and changes, but it is time to fully sunset the Harmony network."
Retiring a blockchain is an unusual move. Chains that fail normally lose users and developers until nothing is left running on them, rather than announcing a closure and a migration plan.
The proposal is explicitly non-binding and carries a disclaimer saying all plans are subject to change.
Harmony has not said whether the shutdown will go to a governance process the network uses for other decisions, in which elected validators — a term for entities that maintain a network using their computing resources — submit proposals and voting power is weighted by stake.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in