Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson has announced a shift in the development model of the project for 2025. The new approach will introduce agile engineering teams whose aim is to achieve a faster execution of the platform’s development goals.
According to the update, the key milestone for these teams will be the delivery of the Ouroboros Leios protocol, which Cardano is now targeting for 2026. Since the creation of the project, Cardano has always followed a formal method approach, prioritizing safety and academic rigor. While this strategy ensured that the project achieved high standards in code quality and network stability, it came at a cost, seeing slower feature rollouts and limited community involvement.
We are at a very exciting inflection point with respect to Cardano's engineering and the diversity of ideas and teams. In the beginning there was one philosophy that was rigorous, safe, and effective, but it also deeply alienated many who wanted to contribute, prevented new ideas…
— Charles Hoskinson (@IOHK_Charles) May 9, 2025
Cardano unveils new shift for 2025 development model
The Cardano founder mentioned that even though the earlier model was effective for secure development, it isolated contributors and reduced the project’s growth. “In the beginning, there was one philosophy that was rigorous, safe, and effective, but it also deeply alienated many who wanted to contribute, prevented new ideas from entering our ecosystem, and resulted in a very slow delivery of features,” Hoskinson said.
He added that the original team did not want deadlines, prioritizing ideal practices, and took a long-term view, often thinking about years or decades. He added that the project benefited from it because the unsafe practice was spread across the industry, it also made it difficult for Cardano to thrive and grow.
Cardano is now looking to change that, with the company now bringing in smaller, independent teams. The structural changes will aim to improve the platform’s delivery speed and encourage diverse contributions to the ecosystem. Groups like Aiken and Midgard, according to Hoskinson, will now be contributing to the ecosystem. He also mentioned that in addition, IOG’s formal method groups, which continue to use Agda for secure implementations, will also be contributing.
Hoskinson targets 2026 for Ouroboros Leios upgrade
According to Hoskinson, this new development will also ensure that this new multi-client and multi-team strategy will breed competition in terms of ideas and strategies, allowing them to co-exist while providing flexibility for new protocols and use cases. “We are opening up the ecosystem,” he said, “augmented with small agile teams… while preserving the knowledge and rigor of our formal methods.”
In response to concerns from the community about the termination of key contracts, Hoskinson made a direct explanation. He mentioned that he wants to bring forward the date for the Ouroboros Leios update. “Because I want Leios in 2026, not 2028, and I value Pragma and different ideas and implementations. No more fucking games or delays. Cardano needs to get to the next level,” he added. Notably, Ouroboros Leios is a key scalability upgrade that is expected to enhance transaction throughput and network efficiency.
Meanwhile, the Cardano community has accepted the news positively, with a commenter praising the progress the project has made in areas like scalability, interoperability, and governance. “I think we’re moving much faster than before, and I am personally thrilled that this is happening in a bull year,” the user added. Another user shared in the belief, mentioning that the only way decentralization can thrive is if competition and collaboration meet, adding that the new teams are the fuel.
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