ETH, or **Ethereum**, is a decentralized open-source platform that allows the creation and execution of smart contracts and decentralized applications (DApps). It was launched in 2015 by Vitalik Buterin and other collaborators. Unlike Bitcoin, which mainly focuses on being a digital currency, Ethereum enables developers to create applications on its blockchain, which operates as a secure network without intermediaries. ETH is the native cryptocurrency of Ethereum and is used to pay for transactions and the execution of smart contracts on the network. Furthermore, Ethereum is constantly evolving, with plans to upgrade to a more efficient and sustainable model known as Ethereum 2.0, which aims to improve scalability and reduce energy consumption.
