Bitcoin for example (and many others), will prune old blocks that are no longer required to make transactions on the network. If a block has all unspent inputs used up, the block will be pruned
The hype around "you don't need a blockchain" is reaching a fever pitch as well. Those who read HN are likely aware of the differences and viable usecases.
There are a few good points made, many business scenarios would be fine with a centralized database.
However, the content is highly opinionated and shows a lack of understanding regarding to crypto transactions and block generation, for example.
> many cryptocurrencies rely on trusted third parties to handle payouts. So, they use blockchain to generate coins, but don’t use blockchain to handle payouts. Because of the issues involved around trust. Let that sink in for a moment.]