A look at the Cardano mining outlook
Since the emergence of Bitcoin, various initiatives and projects have been developed and many more are in the pipeline. Bitcoin, the so-called “first generation” mainly suffers from scalability issues and lack of any supporting features. This was solved by the “second generation”, led by Ethereum with its introduction of additional functionality through its Smart Contract technology. This expanded the sphere of use of the blockchain.
Cardano was built to usher in what the creators call the “third generation” to tackle the three issues the past generations had: scalability, interoperability, and sustainability. In addition, it solves Bitcoin’s inefficient and energy -hungry mining with the Cardano Mining algorithm, Ouroboros.
Cardano is an open source, decentralized blockchain network built by Charles Hoskinson, incidentally one of the founders of Ethereum. Not surprisingly, Cardano is a smart contract platform, much like Ethereum. But what makes Cardano different is that it offers a layered architecture that promotes security and scalability. Cardano has its own cryptocurrency coin, called ADA.
Cardano’s is a not-for-profit project built on the foundation of sound, rigorous and peer-reviewed academic research and principles. As such, it is remarkably well-maintained with three dependably separate organizations. There firms work in perfect tandem to oversee its care and development. These are the Cardano Foundation, Input Output Hong Kong, and Emurgo.
The Cardano Algorithm
Author’s Snapshot of Cardano Ouroboros Official Illustration
Cardano mining utilizes its own mining algorithm called Ouroboros, based on a proof of stake consensus algorithm. It is thus far the first proof of stake that is proven to be secure and scalable through a peer review conducted at Crypto 2017. Its security is comparable to that of Bitcoin’s, but without its energy hungry inefficiencies.
In the Ouroboros algorithm, a stakeholder is randomly picked from among nodes in the network, based on the amount of ADA coins, or stake that node has. The stakeholders then elect a slot leader, who is the one who puts a new block in. The security of the system lies in the completely random way slot leaders are chosen, in which bias is avoided as much as possible.
Since the Ouroboros algorithm is proof of stake, profitability will depend less on your computing power and more on the number of ADA coins your node has. This makes mining significantly easier and less costly, since you don’t need a powerful computer and a large energy consumption.
In theory, Cardano mining can potentially be profitable since costs are lower and your chances of getting rewarded go up the more ADA coins you possess. Ultimately, nothing is set in stone as the Cardano system is still in development to reach its full potential. The profitability of Cardano Mining is tied closely to the profitability of the platform itself.
Fortunately, Cardano is backed by a very strong team, with none other than the co-founder of Ethereum himself, so much potential is expected from the project. Since the public release of the ADA coin, it has seen itself as relatively stable compared to others.
More milestones coming in also signal good things for the project, and this is where it will stake on its future value. One of its milestones included the introduction of a more advanced paper wallet, designed to raise ADA’s credibility and security to entice new investors to buy more coins.
More things to look forward to for Cardano includes its major partnerships, like the one with Metaps Plus, one of South Korea’s largest mobile phone providers. South Korea is a significant crypto market and partnering with them might see usage of ADA rise. Developments on the next phase of the Cardano project, called Shelley, are also underway to achieve a more autonomous and decentralized system.
Looking Forward
In summary, in view of the positive expectations and use-cases that are arising, the project appears viable. Cardano developers are confident the price of ADA will spike up to $10 a coin in 2019.
We believe that 2019 will be a profitable year for Cardano mining. Its potential is still ahead of it, it has a very robust and credible team behind it, and its mining requirements are relatively cheap and rewarding the more you do it. Regardless, mining it will make for a good, profitable passive income come 2019.