Enter the Hydra: scaling distributed ledgers, the evidence-based way

Learn about Hydra: the multi-headed ledger protocol

26 March 2020 Prof Aggelos Kiayias 10 mins read

Enter the Hydra: scaling distributed ledgers, the evidence-based way

Scalability is the greatest challenge to blockchain adoption. By applying a principled, evidence-based approach, we have arrived at a solution for Cardano and networks similar to it: Hydra. Hydra is the culmination of extensive research, and a decisive step in enabling decentralized networks to securely scale to global requirements.

What is scalability and how do we measure it?

Scaling a distributed ledger system refers to the capability of providing high transaction throughput, low latency, and minimal storage per node. These properties have been repeatedly touted as critical for the successful deployment of blockchain protocols as part of real-world systems. In terms of throughput, the VISA network reportedly handles an average of 1,736 payment transactions per second (TPS) with the capability of handling up to 24,000 TPS and is frequently used as a baseline comparison. Transaction…

Educating the world on Cardano: initiatives and plans for 2020

Learn more about the education team's plans for the upcoming year

27 February 2020 Niamh Ahern 5 mins read

Educating the world on Cardano: initiatives and plans for 2020

Education has always been a key part of IOHK’s strategy. Our mission is to grow our global community and business through the medium of education, and to share what we have learned. By claiming leadership in worldwide education on blockchain technology, we have the chance to shape the field for generations and to leave a lasting legacy.

A consistent theme from 2019 has been the…

Community and stake pool reactions to the Shelley Incentivized Testnet

Two months after launch, we look at the reactions so far

20 February 2020 Anthony Quinn 7 mins read

Community and stake pool reactions to the Shelley Incentivized Testnet

The Incentivized Testnet (ITN) has been running since mid-December, and the results have produced some fascinating insights into stake pools and a steep learning curve for the blockchain engineers at IOHK, as well as the companies and individuals setting up stake pools, and ada owners. The strategy of using a fast development team writing in the Rust language to act as…

New Cardano node, explorer backend, and web API released

We’ve refreshed Cardano’s architecture – with more yet to come

12 February 2020 Tim Harrison 4 mins read

New Cardano node, explorer backend, and web API released

Today marks the culmination of considerable effort by the Cardano team: the release of a new Cardano Haskell implementation. This implementation consists of two main components: the Cardano Node and the Cardano Explorer Backend and Web API. Over the past 18 months, we’ve been building a new architectural foundation that will not only prepare us for the upcoming releases for…

Shelley Incentivized Testnet: the story in numbers

We've compiled some Incentivized Testnet statistics. Check them out.

7 February 2020 Tim Harrison <1 min read

The Shelley Incentivized Testnet is proving to be an incredible journey. Originally, we hoped for around 100 pools. As of today, we've reached over 1,000 registered and more than 670 active pools. Over 11.5B ada is now being staked on the testnet. The many improvements to performance have resulted in an increase in uptime – but there's still a way to go. We are not resting on…