Cardano Excluded from U.S. Blockchain Data Initiative: Here's the Reason

Cardano's Exclusion from U.S. Government Blockchain Initiative

• Reason for Exclusion: Cardano was not included in the U.S. government's project to integrate official economic data onto public blockchains due to high integration costs quoted by Chainlink, as explained by founder Charles Hoskinson during a recent YouTube AMA.
• Chainlink's Role: Chainlink, the oracle service selected for the initiative, provided what Hoskinson described as an "absurd number" for Cardano's integration, leading to its exclusion alongside XRP.

Impact on Cardano and Chainlink

• Market Reaction: The announcement of Chainlink's partnership with the Department of Commerce resulted in a more than 5% increase in the price of Chainlink's token, LINK, reflecting positive investor sentiment.
• Cardano's Track Record: Despite the setback, Cardano boasts a five-year history of zero downtime, a significant achievement compared to many competitors in the blockchain space.

Criticism and Future Prospects

• Critiques of Cardano: Critics highlight that Cardano has been in discussions with Chainlink for years without finalizing a deal, raising concerns about its slow feature rollout and late entry into decentralized finance (DeFi). The network only introduced smart contracts in 2021, trailing behind competitors like Ethereum.
• Complex Integration Challenges: Cardano's unique design, which is not compatible with Ethereum's virtual machine, complicates and increases the cost of integrating with Chainlink.

Ongoing Partnerships and Developments

• Future Collaborations: Hoskinson mentioned that Cardano is still pursuing partnerships, including discussions with Aave and the USD1 stablecoin project, which could enhance its DeFi ecosystem. USD1 is already operational on Ethereum, BNB, and Tron, indicating potential for growth on Cardano.