In a huge step forward for the Cardano (ADA) network, the Alonzo white hard fork upgrade has been completed – paving the way for smart contract integrations.
This innovative Alonzo network upgrade is a key step as the project moves towards the full launch release date in August.
With the white fork complete, Cardano is now functional for integration with most DeFi applications, allowing the network to be a genuine alternative to Ethereum. This competitive edge will only sharpen when the ADA network becomes fully capable of hosting smart contracts by the end of September.
The Alonzo Blue hard fork was the first to incorporate smart contract features to a select few users.
Alonzo White hard fork’s successful implementation has extended this feature to an even larger number of network users – 500 of whom have been given access to the feature as validators for the test net.
Indeed, the IOHK development team are now in the process of testing and tweaking the upgrade, ensuring it functions perfectly on the Alonzo mainnet.
ICYMI: Last week, we successfully hardforked into the #AlonzoWhite testnet phase 💪 @timbharrison caught up with some of the team working on the program. Here’s our mid-month update on the progress so far ⬇️ 👍#Cardano #Alonzo #Goguen #smartcontractshttps://t.co/unZ6O07YKm
— Input Output (@InputOutputHK) July 19, 2021
Commenting on testnet progress, the IOHK CEO and co-founder Charles Hoskinson said everything was going as planned.
“Things are looking good, we’ve discovered bugs and integration issues that we would expect to discover along the way,” he said.
“But we’re working through them – we’re following a rigorous process, but things overall are fairly stable.”
Cardano network roadmap
The ADA team has outlined its Alonzo launch through a colour-coded roadmap, which has so far completed the blue and white upgrades.
There are numerous major upgrades and features planned, with the next component in the roadmap focused on network scalability and network governance, colloquially known as Alonzo purple (a tandem integration of Alonzo red and black).
Successful implementation of the upgrades will set the stage for a full Cardano Alonzo mainnet launch.
“Our growth over the last year has been remarkable, and smart contracts are nearly here” said Hokinson while discussing the sheer size of the ecosystem work taking place.
The price action has responded well to the strong progress made by the ADA team, standing as one of the most popular crypto assets.
ADA activity has surged over the past year, with more than 650,000 staking addresses as of last month. The estimated amount of staked ADA is valued in excess of $29B, accounting for 70% of the total supply.
“Cardano remains one of the fastest growing, most stable, most mature, and systematic cryptocurrency projects,” Hoskinson added.
Many analysts tip Cardano as a token with significant future upside potential.
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