Uncovering the Big Hands Behind $IRIS

1/ The First Big Hand @tkstanczak Tomasz Stańczak

2017: Founded Nethermind (one of the important clients for Ethereum today)

March 2025: The Ethereum Foundation announces the appointment of Tomasz Stańczak as Co-Executive Director

May 2025: Established Lantern Capital, focusing on AI and Ethereum ecosystem projects

Side Note: Lantern Capital has not yet invested in any projects since its establishment; this VC is under close watch.

Titles held by Tomasz:

Founder of Nethermind

Co-Executive Director of the Ethereum Foundation

Co-Founder of Lantern Capital

Board Member of Starknet Foundation

2/ Another Big Hand @virtuals_io Official

Note on wording: $IRIS is a “collaborative project led and managed by Virtuals, built on Nethermind technology.”

Clear division of labor:

Virtuals: Responsible for $IRIS token issuance, ecosystem development, and deployment agency

Nethermind: Provides technical support

3/ Outlook

This wave of interest is likely to peak, with participation numbers and staking points surpassing those of Solace being highly probable.

More importantly, the deep cooperation between Ethereum and Virtuals has just begun.