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ZEC $1,115 Hoskinson says Cardano is complete after Leios upgrade
Cardano's founder says one upgrade remains before the network matches his vision, while the Leios scaling work is still in testing.
Key takeaways
- One upgrade remains. Hoskinson said Cardano is complete after Leios, which he called the last piece of his plan.
- Throughput target is set. Leios aims to move Cardano from about 5, 10 TPS to around 100 TPS, with 1,000 TPS as a longer-term goal.
- Testing is under way. IOG demonstrated about 1,000 TPS in September 2026 testing, and the Musashi Dojo testnet is in its Fire phase.
What happened
Charles Hoskinson answered a question on X about whether Cardano is finished, meaning completed. He said the network will be complete after the Leios upgrade.
Hoskinson listed the features he said Cardano already has, including decentralized consensus, governance, the EUTXO model, Plutus smart contracts, security and multiple independent nodes. He also cited the millions of people who hold ADA.
Leios is Cardano's next consensus and scaling upgrade. It is meant to raise transaction throughput and speed while keeping decentralization and security.
The upgrade targets a rise from about 5, 10 TPS to around 100 TPS, with a longer-term goal of 1,000 TPS or more, subject to validation and parameter selection.
IOG developers demonstrated about 1,000 TPS with Ouroboros Leios in testing in September 2026. The public Musashi Dojo testnet launched on June 23, 2026, and has entered its Fire phase.
First $0.2556Latest $0.22-13.9% over the period
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Why it matters
Cardano's current consensus protocol, Ouroboros Praos, was built for security and decentralization rather than the throughput of a widely used layer 1. Leios adds endorser blocks and committee-based validation to raise capacity.
The upgrade calls for a major overhaul of Cardano's architecture, which the reports describe as a complex undertaking.
Hoskinson also said he is close to finishing the conceptual design of a Midnight-related idea, which he described as the magnum opus of his career. Midnight is described as Cardano's privacy-focused partner blockchain.
What is still unclear
- The reports give no date for Leios completion on mainnet. The 100 TPS and 1,000 TPS figures depend on further testing, validation and network parameter settings.
- The reports do not say whether faster transactions and the Midnight work would lead to more adoption or demand for ADA.
Questions readers ask
Is Cardano finished or complete?
Not yet, according to Charles Hoskinson. He said Cardano will be complete after the Leios upgrade, which he described as the last item on his list.
What is the Leios upgrade?
Leios is Cardano's next consensus and scaling upgrade. It is designed to raise transaction throughput and speed while preserving decentralization and security.
How fast will Cardano be after Leios?
The target is around 100 TPS, up from about 5, 10 TPS, with a longer-term goal of 1,000 TPS or more. Those figures depend on validation and parameter choices.
What is the Musashi Dojo testnet?
It is the public testnet for Leios, launched on June 23, 2026. It rolls out in five phases, and Input Output says it has entered the Fire phase.
