Cardano Van Rossem Upgrade Brings Significant Improvements

Cardano is on the cusp of its next hard fork, known as Van Rossem, which is expected to bring significant upgrades to the network. The Van Rossem upgrade, Protocol Version 11, has already been tested on the Preview testnet and is set to be activated on the mainnet on May 29, pending infrastructure readiness.

The upgrade aims to improve script performance, reduce execution costs, and enhance cryptographic primitives. Specifically, it will expand Plutus compatibility, introduce new built-in functions, and make all built-in functions available across Plutus V1, V2, and V3. This will enable developers to create more efficient smart contracts and reduce the cost of executing them.

The Van Rossem upgrade is seen as a crucial step in determining Cardano's developer adoption and application activity. With its modest DeFi usage gap compared to competing networks, Cardano needs to demonstrate strong developer support for its upgrades to gain traction. The success of this upgrade will also be an important test of Cardano's governance coordination under the Conway-era framework.