In 2022, Taylor Gerring posted a series of photos from the early days of Ethereum on Twitter and then gathered those into a single thread to celebrate the 10th Anniversary in 2025. This article aggregates the photos and their captions into a single article, together with links to the profiles of individuals who are mentioned.
- Ethereum Pre-launch Photographs (JAN-FEB 2014)
- Ethereum Pre-launch Photographs (MAR 2014)
- Ethereum Pre-launch Photographs (APR-JUL 2014)
GM! 8 years ago today, I arrived at the Miami house rented by Decentral. Since I showed up unannounced and there were no more beds, my only choice was to sleep under the stars. I don't know anyone, don't have a car, and don't know what I'm there to do. - 25th January 2014
8 years ago today, #Ethereum was formally announced in Miami. After a standing-room only talk and extended line of questions, we all shuffled into a hallway to make room for the next speaker. Joe Lubin and Anthony Di Iorio can be seen next to Vitalik as the crowd encroaches - 26th January 2014
Late into the night, some of our team gathered on the back patio for interviews. In addition to those named in yesterday's photo, appearing below are Charles, Joe, Jeremy, Dino, and one unidentified smoker. My hammock is back and to the left. #EthYearsAgo - 27th January 2014
Ethereum at the end of January 2014. This photo was not taken with my phone, even though multiple cameras were used to capture the moment. This is my final share from Miami and occurred ~Jan 31. Next month, my photo journal will resume in Europe - 31st January 2014
(The Ethereum team in their Miami house rented by Anthony Di Iorio for the 2014 Bitcoin conference. Top (left to right): Dino Mark, Yanislav Malahov, Charles Hoskinson, Anthony 'Texture' D'Onofrio, Steve Dakh, Wendell Davis, Jonathan Mohan, Joseph Lubin, Louis Parker. Bottom (left to right): Gavin Wood, Vitalik Buterin, Anthony Di Iorio, Taylor Gerring, Jason Colby, Kyle Kurbegovich)
(This image is from Taylor's twitter thread, with caption and names taken from Why Polkadot is The Next Big Mover This Bull Cycle)
8 years ago tonight was my last day as a typical Chicagoan. Taken at The Green Lady, I would get far too little sleep for my early flight the next morning. The time could not have come sooner, as I had all but lost my ability to talk about anything except blockchain #MyEthJourney - 8th February 2014
February 9, 2014 was the day when we arrived in Europe. I flew to Germany for a layover where I would meet up with Nick and fly to Zurich. Perhaps because of the approaching Valentine's Day—the airline handed out free chocolates #MyEthJourney - 9th February 2014
Our AirBnB was half of a duplex next to a dairy facility. This is most of the village that we called home for several weeks. The views from this hill were stunning and provided a necessary balance to the chaotic beginning of the Ethereum Switzerland crew #MyEthJourney - 9th February 2014
Upon landing, we took a train ride southward to a small farming town by the name of Meierskapple. This was our view off the back patio #MyEthJourney - 9th February 2014
Our AirBnB was half of a duplex next to a dairy facility. This is most of the village that we called home for several weeks. The views from this hill were stunning and provided a necessary balance to the chaotic beginning of the Ethereum Switzerland crew #MyEthJourney - 9th February 2014
8 years ago was our first visit to Rotkreuz. We would eventually make a good friend from this place, but for now—it was the closest town with groceries to feed the growing team. I forget the reason these mannequins were on display, but maybe someone from the area knows? #Ethereum - 10th February 2014
Who loves food??? This is the very first culinary photo of (not too) many from 8 years ago with the Ethereum Switzerland team. Matthias was an excellent cook and prepared many of the meals in our first weeks, always careful to provide a veg only option 🤤 #EthereumPhoto - 11th February 2014
8 years ago today, the EthSwiss team started building a portal which would lay the tech groundwork for the Ethereum Crowdsale. We didn't know what it needed to do or when it would happen—so we worked together to build something fun 🤝 - 12th February 2014
8 years ago today, the EthSwiss crew welcomed Stephan to our tiny AirBnB. We only end up staying 1 more night before having to relocate to somewhere with even less space. - 13th February 2014
8 Valentine's Days ago, the EthSwiss crew packed our bags and left the tiny apartment to live in an even smaller one for a few days. Our group continues to grow and we will have even more guests upon return. - 14th February 2014
After packing our bags and cramming into cars, we arrived in beautiful Lucerne. After 8 years I'm only now realizing that I captured a day & night version of this building - 15th February 2014
If you've never been to Switzerland, probably you've at least heard of Swiss Chocolates?! With no room to work, and being our first time seeing such a display, we had no choice but to try a few different kinds 😋🤔🤤 - 16th February 2014
8 years is nothing compared to the age of this! Built in 1332 as fortification, Chapel Bridge was decorated with picture panels in the 17th century. What a historical place to visit during a historic time - 17th February 2014
8 years later, the EthSwiss team doesn't get enough credit for the artistic inspiration that ended up being used on the website, at meetups, and generally stirring up the dreams of decentralization enthusiasts everywhere #EthereumPhoto - 18th February 2014
Nick and I found an Irish pub on the last day in Lucerne. With everyone living in such close proximity, this was a rare moment of relative peace. Tomorrow, our AirBnB would become available again #EthereumPhoto - 19th February 2014
Back to Meierskappel and the group has expanded once again. Richard and Ian arrive to join the creative efforts while Charles jumps in to do interviews. We all share a table to work and a floor to sleep #Ethereum - 20th February 2014
We had met just 2 weeks prior, but were already raising a glass to one another's birthdays - 21st February 2014
The next morning, we continued the celebration with these amazing breakfast cookies 🤤 - 22nd February 2014
Still living in the AirBnB, we were invited to a meetup in Zurich. Few were in attendance compared with gatherings today, but it still afforded us critical networking opportunities. After the extended event, we grabbed some doner kebab before heading home - 23rd February 2014
From breakfast to beer, simple pleasures can be the greatest luxury - 24th February 2014
Having coffee but no grinder, we made use of the only tools at our disposal & taking turns on this inefficient machine. Life begins to pick up significantly next month… - 25th February 2014
Our entire AirBnB including office, kitchen, and sleeping loft. We enjoyed our time together but desperately needed more space - 28th February 2014
“Charles bought dinner for 10 people that night. This was the first time I remember eating out after sleeping on the floor for a month. The bill was 100s of Swiss Francs and little did we know—none of us would be paid for months to come” – Taylor Gerring, Mar 1, 2022
“Watching “Fight Club” in the loft of Ethereum’s Swiss AirBnB in 2014 - Mihai, Roxana, Charles, Lorenzo” – Taylor Gerring, Mar 2, 2022
“Ethereum Spaceship before move-in” – Taylor Gerring, Mar 3, 2022
“Back in the AirBnB since we had no furniture in the Spaceship. Jeremy Wood is in the foreground and you can see blankets hanging from over the loft. These would be our final nights in Meierskappel.” – Taylor Gerring, Mar 4, 2022
“We had finally & officially moved into the Spaceship. Surrounded by farmland, we bought everything we could from Ikea. Everything else would come from a local farmer shop” – Taylor Gerring, Mar 5, 2022
“When life was filled with banalities the friendships we forged over rounds of beers pulled us through. ISO 100; 30mm; f2.2; 1/30s” – Taylor Gerring, Mar 7, 2022
“Why did we look tired? Besides sleeping on the ground for month, you could be woken up for any numerous loud noises 🎵🔊 ISO 50-250; 30mm; f2.2; 1/30s” – Taylor Gerring, Mar 7, 2022
“Lorenzo was maligned for being “non-technical” but did things the rest of us wouldn’t. Here, he was building walls to make a 4th room. ISO 80; 30mm; f2.2; 1/30s” – Taylor Gerring, Mar 7, 2022
“Playing footie on the front deck of the Ethereum Spaceship was a great way to pass time, soak up some sun, and get exercise. 5 photos animated in a loop (2014)” – Taylor Gerring, Mar 8, 2022
“We had only been in the Spaceship for a few days, but you know what that meant?! Time for a party!!!” – Taylor Gerring, Mar 9, 2022
“While the Spaceship was extravagant in a way that none of us had experienced before, we made the best of otherwise mediocre resources. Mathias brought an old projector, which we used for meetings, ambiance & entertainment” – Taylor Gerring, Mar 10, 2022
“By this point, we were fairly suspicious of Charles’ claims. Here we were shopping, but tomorrow I will include photos when I realized it was more bravado than substance” – Taylor Gerring, Mar 11, 2022
“Some chill pictures from Zug in 2014 for a relaxing Sunday. I was really intrigued by this school’s architecture and we passed by it whenever we went to town” – Taylor Gerring, Mar 13, 2022
“These were my living quarters in the “cold” shared bedroom. We each got an Ikea mattress and a set of cube storage for personal items. Still, a huge upgrade from the single room AirBnB we all initially shared” – Taylor Gerring, Mar 14, 2022
“The first time I remember us going out for some night life was a small bar near Lake Zug. We ended up walking past many times but I never went back for food or drinks” – Taylor Gerring, Mar 15, 2022
“Grilling on the deck of the Ethereum Spaceship became a favorite activity during my time in Switzerland. I did my best to recreate an American experience for my European friends” – Taylor Gerring, Mar 16, 2022
“Startup lifestyle is messy and moves fast, but you still figure out how to have fun and make frens” – Taylor Gerring, Mar 17, 2022
“GM! Around this time, the Ethereum Spaceship finally had a whiteboard installed. The neon lights were taken down and we were starting to act like a real org, but tensions were rising in the background” – Taylor Gerring, Mar 18, 2022
“Still not sure what Charles was doing writing on the windows when we had a whiteboard. Also found this interesting pic that I did not take "Charles Hoskinson 'sleeping on a floor' with Susanne Tarkowski Tempelhof and a bottle of Cristal."” – Taylor Gerring, Mar 19, 2022
(Editor: Susanne was the founder of BitNation)
“In the beginning of living in the Spaceship, we constantly had trouble with mail delivery. Finally, it was decided we needed a street sign. A story of iteration in 3 pics” – Taylor Gerring, Mar 22, 2022
“Before NFTs, before ICOs, before Ethereum. We were poor Bitcoiners trying to make a difference” – Taylor Gerring, Mar 24, 2022
“The basement of the Spaceship was initially Charles’ office/bedroom, but when he would travel, we would use it as a hangout space separate from the work area” – Taylor Gerring, Apr 3, 2022
“It's called WEekend for a reason” – Taylor Gerring, Apr 3, 2022
“The day we tried to get repaired bicycles for the Spaceship. Most of the good stuff was taken, but we managed to snag a few and Lorenzo helped us fix the outstanding issues” – Taylor Gerring, Apr 5, 2022
“Who likes smoothies? Roxana made these beautiful mango treats before we would take off for Bitcoin Expo 2014 in Toronto” – Taylor Gerring, Apr 6, 2022
“Anyone remember airBitz? They were a sponsor of Bitcoin Expo 2014. Now they are EdgeWallet!” – Taylor Gerring, Apr 11, 2022
“One of the very first Ethereum shirts” – Taylor Gerring, Apr 12, 2022
“What do you think Peter Todd was telling Gavin and Vitalik?” – Taylor Gerring, Apr 13, 2022
“Ethereum’s first (and probably last) booth. We took turns answering questions and shooing hecklers” – Taylor Gerring, Apr 15, 2022
“Ethereum was not the only star of Bitcoin Expo 2014. Other OGs like Amir Taaki and Adam B. Levine could be found interviewing or giving talks” – Taylor Gerring, Apr 15, 2022
“Doing things unrelated to coding, Jeff looked seminally bored” – Taylor Gerring, Apr 15, 2022
“Since we’re all down bad, and I haven’t shared an image in a while: 8 years ago is the moment that I realized the tides were turning at Ethereum. The nonprofit entity was not yet established and Stephan & Mathias Skyped from London to Zug” – Taylor Gerring, May 27, 2022
“GM to June! Taken just days before Ethereum’s "Red Wedding", this rear deck is where the entire house waited while Vitalik made his decision about Charles & Amir.” – Taylor Gerring, Jun 1, 2022
“19 year old Vitalik standing on the edge of Lake Zug. What do you think he was pondering?” – Taylor Gerring, Jun 3, 2022
“Mihai was also with us” – Taylor Gerring, Jun 3, 2022
“V being smiley” – Taylor Gerring, Jun 3, 2022
“Friendly photos and good vibes before saying our mutual goodbyes” – Taylor Gerring, Jun 4, 2022
“Ethereum was eventually decided to be an open source non-profit model. After this edict was made clear, we proceeded to sketch out how funds would be allocated. Compared with a lot of other projects, we were stunningly efficient with only ~$15M” – Taylor Gerring, Jun 4, 2022
“That time we tried to sketch out how future organizations might use Dapps, DAOs, and decentralization” – Taylor Gerring, Jun 8, 2022
“Not the bag I had in mind 😭” – Taylor Gerring, Jun 11, 2022
“Have you ever seen something so beautiful?! 😇 Michael Perklin had custom cases made for the open hardware which EF would use as Bitcoin multisig devices” – Taylor Gerring, Jul 7, 2022
“GM & HBD!!!! Ethereum Frontier launched 7 years ago today 🥳” – Taylor Gerring, Jul 30, 2022
“Happy Birthday Ethereum” – Taylor Gerring, Jul 30, 2022
