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In a recent X discussion, Ripple CTO emeritus David Schwartz has clarified his current position at the company.
An X user had asked Schwartz whether he still serves as a non-executive director. "Are you not still a Non-Executive Director at Ripple?" the X user asked.
The question came after Schwartz said he no longer works for Ripple and had retired. "I don't work for Ripple anymore. I retired," Schwartz stated.
In response to the X user's question, Schwartz said he remains on Ripple's Board of Directors and also serves as CTO Emeritus: "I'm on the Board of Directors and I'm CTO Emeritus."
Schwartz also said he still meets with his former team twice a month, while he occasionally visits Ripple's offices without a formal schedule, describing these visits as opportunities to say hello to his former colleagues: "I still meet with my former team twice a month and show up randomly at Ripple offices and say hi."
David Schwartz, one of the original architects of the XRP Ledger, became the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Ripple in July 2018, after previously serving as the company's chief cryptographer since 2011. He transitioned out of his day-to-day operating CTO role at the end of December 2025 to become CTO Emeritus and join Ripple's Board of Directors.
Despite stepping away from his full-time responsibilities, Schwartz indicated that he maintains a connection with the company and his former team.
Never leaving XRP
Schwartz maintains he was not going away from the XRP community, participating in the XRP Ledger through his XRP node, which has now been running for several months, publishing its output data and researching other use cases for XRP besides what Ripple is focused on, among other things.
Shortly after Evernorth, a Ripple-backed XRP treasury firm, was revealed, Schwartz stated he would serve as a strategic advisor to the company, bringing his wealth of experience despite his retirement from Ripple.
At the Swell event, which was held at the end of October, Schwartz joined Ayo Akinyele, Head of Engineering for RippleX, in a conversation on what comes next for XRPL. The discussion explored the technologies shaping the ledger's evolution, the trade-offs behind them, and what it will take to support the next generation of financial and on-chain applications.