Cardano Transfers Control of Core Infrastructure for Decentralization
Cardano's developer Input Output is transferring control of key infrastructure to external firms, effective August 2026, according to Decrypt. This shift precedes the Van Rossem hard fork on July 18, which aims to reduce the costs of smart contract execution, as ADA's price increases slightly to $0.165.
Input Output (IOG), the company behind Cardano, is set to transfer control of its core blockchain infrastructure to external teams starting in August 2026. This transition, which will run through 2027, involves handing over management of the Haskell node, the Plutus smart contract platform, the Daedalus wallet, and the Hydra scaling tool. The selected firms for this initiative include Se7en Labs, which has experience with Solana infrastructure, and Teragone, known for leading the development of Mithril, a stake-based signature protocol for Cardano.
The move comes ahead of the upcoming Van Rossem hard fork, slated to activate on July 18, 2026, at 21:44 UTC. This upgrade is expected to take Cardano to Protocol Version 11 and includes new built-in functions in Plutus designed to lower smart contract execution costs. Following this announcement, the price of ADA experienced a slight uptick, trading at around $0.165. Despite this, ADA remains approximately 95% below its all-time high reached in 2021.
The transition is framed as a significant step toward full decentralization of Cardano’s development. Charles Hoskinson, founder of Cardano, emphasized the completion of the Voltaire era, a phase focused on governance and decentralization that has been evolving since 2024. He stated,
“Our partners are ready, and the ecosystem now has many diverse options.”
He highlighted that this final phase of decentralization involves multiple node implementations in languages including Haskell, Rust, and Go operating concurrently under community oversight.This significant shift aligns with Cardano's new motto: “Built by many, owned by all.” As Cardano evolves, the focus on decentralizing its engineering and infrastructure may have implications for its user base and overall adoption.
Looking ahead, the market will be monitoring the successful completion of the infrastructure handover, the impact of the Van Rossem hard fork on transaction efficiency, and Cardano's evolving governance structure as it strives for greater decentralization.
Summary based on original reporting by Jose Antonio Lanz at Decrypt, originally published Jul 17, 2026. SolanaWire does not republish source content.
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