Cardano & the Promise of the Blockchain
Charles Hoskinson, IOHK Founder & CEO and one of the masterminds behind the Cardano project is one of my favorite voices in the cryptosphere. He recently gave a fascinating talk about third generation blockchain in Cambridge, Massachusetts in front of a sold out crowd.
In short, Charles and his team are trying to tackle the biggest challenges that continue to plague the first two generations of blockchain technology, Bitcoin and Ethereum respectively, the latter of which Hoskinson co-founded and served as CEO. The Cardano team’s focus is on three key obstacles — scalability, interoperability, and sustainability—all of which he outlines in great depth and remarkable accessibility in his Cardano whiteboard.
The Cardano team sets itself apart from other blockchain projects in that they have a scientific and research driven approach, and proposals are peer-reviewed at the highest academic level. Cardano also uses a new proof-of-stake algorithm called Ouroboros, the first blockchain protocol of its kind. According to the developers, it will solve the problem of scalability, especially in regards to the energy demanding proof-of-work protocols that curse Bitcoin.
Futhermore, Hoskinson recently stated that he believes the crypto market will see consolidation after a crash. I completely agree with him in that many projects are based on hype and don’t have strong fundamentals or inherently good tech; many proposals and timelines are simply unrealistic. Should this happen, I believe it would be a great thing for the development of blockchain technology. The market is highly overvalued considering there has yet to be any large scale, real world application (unless you include CryptoKitties on the Ethereum network).
However, that is not to say that the best days are behind us. We are just beginning, and I have no doubt that blockchain tech will completely revolutionize the world as much or more than the Internet has. I’m merely suggesting that it would be a positive step forward for the development of this technology and healthy for the overall crypto market if projects that lack substance fail sooner than later.
In the end, it’ll be the teams with visionary ideas who think longterm and seek to solve real problems in the world that succeed. Cardano is one of those projects. They have a long road(map) ahead of them, and I believe they hold the promise of the blockchain in the palm of their hand.
