Charles Hoskinson, the founder of Cardano, in a recent online exchange, emphasized that the network’s evolution remains a work in progress, with the pivotal Leios upgrade marking a critical juncture. According to Hoskinson, post-Leios, Cardano is expected to fully realize its foundational objectives.
Defining Completion According to Hoskinson
Hoskinson outlined the parameters that would define Cardano’s completion, focusing on decentralization, governance structures, an EUTXO model, the Plutus platform, high scalability, robust security, and a self-evolving architecture. He emphasized that millions currently own ADA, reflecting broad ownership. As the founder of Input Output, Hoskinson stands as a leading figure in the Cardano ecosystem.
Charles Hoskinson stated that after Leios, Cardano will possess everything it aims to achieve, including decentralized consensus, governance, development structure, and high scalability.
Impacts of the Leios Transition
Leios is positioned as the next-generation consensus and scaling upgrade for Cardano. The objective is to significantly enhance transaction capacity and speed while preserving decentralization and security. It aims to incrementally boost the current mainnet capacity by factors of 2 to 30, with its full potential initially showcased on the test network.
The EUTXO model, which stands for Extended Unspent Transaction Output, aims to enhance transaction predictability, while Plutus serves as the programming foundation for smart contracts on Cardano. Recent updates from Input Output reveal that the public test network, Musashi Dojo, has transitioned into the Fire phase, part of a five-stage process initiated on June 23, 2026.
Aiming for Enhanced Transaction Capacity
Currently, Cardano utilizes the Ouroboros Praos consensus protocol, designed around security and decentralization. However, the scale required by a globally adopted first-layer network necessitates higher transaction throughput. Leios seeks to reinforce this through new mechanisms such as validator blocks and committee-based validation to increase the volume of transactions Cardano can handle.
The long-term vision aims for Cardano to elevate from approximately 5-10 Transactions Per Second (TPS) to around 100 TPS, and potentially exceeding 1,000 TPS based on future validations and parameter selections. Input Output developers conducted tests with Ouroboros Leios in September 2026, demonstrating around 1,000 TPS.
Input Output announced the progression of the Musashi Dojo test network into the Fire phase, with Leios expected to incrementally enhance the main network’s capacity.
Broader Applications of Increased Capacity
An enhanced transaction capacity might unlock widespread applications across global micro-payment systems, decentralized supply chain tracking, scalable DeFi applications for time-sensitive operations, digital identity solutions for large populations, and real-time voting systems.
Within this framework, Leios transcends a mere performance update, positioning itself as an essential component of Cardano’s long-standing scalability goals on its technical roadmap.
