Charles Hoskinson once again defended Cardano's development strategy by comparing the blockchain's evolution to Anthropic's trajectory in the artificial intelligence sector. According to the project's founder, the company managed to gain ground among the segment's leaders even though it arrived after competitors such as Google and OpenAI, thanks to prioritizing development quality rather than speed.
In Hoskinson's assessment, the same logic could benefit Cardano in the cryptocurrency market. He said that investors and developers have begun to place greater value on factors such as security, governance, and protocol sustainability, reducing the pressure for fast launches.
“Initially, Google had a big advantage, then OpenAI did too, and then, somehow, this Anthropic thing emerged and they managed to surpass everyone. [...] They did not fundamentally change, they just adopted the right mindset.”
For Hoskinson, this shift in perception is happening at a time when attacks against DeFi protocols have become more frequent, increasing concern about the security of the infrastructure used by decentralized applications.
He reinforced this argument by highlighting that projects focused solely on accelerating product launches end up taking on risks that can compromise the entire ecosystem.
“People are starting to wake up, especially in the era of computer piracy, where everything is becoming vulnerable and where speed in bringing products to market is not the most desirable path.”
Recent attacks reinforce security concerns
During the interview, Hoskinson cited the attack suffered by Kelp DAO as an example of the impacts caused by failures in interconnected protocols.
In the episode, attackers exploited a vulnerability related to communication between blockchains to issue unbacked units of rsETH. The assets were later used as collateral on Aave to obtain loans in legitimate cryptocurrencies.
Although Aave's smart contracts were not directly compromised, the use of the fraudulent assets increased the protocol's exposure to financial losses. The episode triggered a sharp withdrawal of liquidity, significantly reducing total value locked (TVL) before the containment measures were implemented.
According to Hoskinson, this type of incident demonstrates how a single vulnerability can affect several protocols connected to one another.
“The recent AAVE and Kelp cases show how quickly you can lose your TVL (total value locked) and your customer base. In other words, it works until it stops working, and when that happens, it is catastrophic for the ecosystem.”
In the Cardano founder's view, building a resilient blockchain requires more than quality code. For him, well-defined processes and a consistent governance structure are essential to ensure stability over time.
“People want stability, and that can only be achieved with a clear governance system, a clear software development system, and good guidelines on how to develop a roadmap sustainably.”
ADA's performance remains below expectations
The statements also come at a time when Cardano continues to receive criticism over the strategy adopted since its creation. Over the years, the project became known for prioritizing academic research and scientific validation before implementing new features, while other blockchains accelerated the expansion of their ecosystems.
Despite remaining among the market's largest projects by market capitalization, ADA has accumulated weaker performance than other major cryptocurrencies. Over the last 12 months, the token recorded a drop close to 80%, exceeding the losses seen in Ethereum, which fell about 48%, and Bitcoin, which posted a depreciation of approximately 44% in the same period.
Even in light of this track record, Hoskinson maintains his defense that an approach focused on security, governance, and sustainable development may generate more consistent results for Cardano as the market begins to demand more robust and failure-resistant protocols.