Cardano Director explains how Input Endorsers will yield a “super fast Layer-1” 🚨 This article is 3 years old...
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Cardano Director explains how Input Endorsers will yield a “super fast Layer-1”
Input Endorsers are pitched as a more efficient way to reach consensus and handle throughput. John Woods unpacks the mechanics of the process in an easy to understand way.
2 min read
Updated: Apr. 29, 2022 at 3:19 pm UTC
Cover art/illustration via CryptoSlate. Image includes combined content which may include AI-generated content.
Director of Cardano Architecture at Input Output (IO), John Woods, explained how Input Endorsers will yield a “super fast layer-1.”
Woods said the company is moving to this new system with Ouroboros but did not set a rollout timeframe. Nonetheless, Input Endorsers promise a revolution in speed through the constant streaming of transaction blocks.
Ouroboros is the Proof-of-Stake (PoS) protocol on which Cardano operates. IO says the protocol has proven security guarantees and can facilitate the propagation of global, permissionless networks with minimal energy requirements.
Woods confirmed that the existing setup is adequate for current network demands. But Input Endorsers represent a forward-thinking design that will be implemented before the need for it arrives.
Input Endorsers to dramatically increase Cardano’s speed
Currently, blocks on the Cardano network are responsible for consensus and holding transaction data within.
The process of Input Endorsing splits each block into two blocks. One of the blocks is designated as the consensus block, with the other used to hold transaction data.
“If we decompose it, so we split the block into two. So, no longer having a single block on the network, but we now have two blocks. And we use one block to hold transactions and another block to achieve consensus.”
As such, the consensus block will no longer contain transaction data. Instead, it will have a reference to the block that holds the transaction data. And with transaction blocks being split from the consensus aspect, the blocks can be streamed constantly without getting caught in a bottleneck waiting for consensus.
“With this new system, effectively, we can have consensus every 20 seconds as we currently do. But rather than waiting every 20 seconds to send transactions, we’re going to send them all the time.”
Woods signed off this segment by saying this ultimately yields “a super fast layer 1.”
When are Input Endorsers coming?
In the battle for layer-1 supremacy, Input Endorsers would add another dimension to Cardano’s scalability. But when will they roll out?
Woods didn’t give a specific date. He added that there’s no requirement for Input Endorsers at this time, as “current technologies” can handle the present network demand.
Nonetheless, he said thinking about these things now, before they are needed, is part of Cardano’s strategy to “stay ahead of the game.”
“Our current technologies are keeping up with the math, no problem. But we need to stay ahead of the game. How do we do that? We think for the future and we start implementing this stuff before its required.”
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Posted In: Cardano, Technology
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Samuel Wan
Samuel Wan, a finance professional turned full-time crypto content creator, values individual autonomy and personal freedom in his pursuits.
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Input Output Hong Kong (IOHK) is a research and development company committed to using the peer-to-peer innovations of blockchain to build accessible financial services for all.