Cardano Post-Plomin Roadmap: What’s Next for the Layer 1 Network?

• Cardano Plomin hard fork has introduced full decentralized governance, completing its foundational roadmap.
• Input | Output (IO) proposes a 2025 roadmap focused on scalability, usability, and interoperability.
• Plans include Hydra Layer 2, Babel fees, BitcoinOS integration, and a multichain ecosystem.

With the Plomin hard fork now implemented, Cardano has entered a new era of full decentralized governance, marking the completion of its foundational development roadmap. This milestone raises the question: What’s next for Cardano?

In response, primary development firm Input | Output (IO) has unveiled a 2025 roadmap proposal, outlining three key priorities to drive the network’s future growth: scalability, usability and utility, and interoperability and extensibility.

Three Key Pillars of Cardano’s 2025 Roadmap

1. Scalability: Expanding to Billions of Users

IO envisions Cardano scaling to support billions of users by 2030. To achieve this, the roadmap proposes:

• Hydra Layer 2 scaling: Already in progress, aiming to enhance transaction throughput.
• Layer 2 rollups like Midgard and Gummiworm for improved efficiency.
• Consensus updates using Ouroboros Leios and Peras to enable parallel transaction processing.

Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson recently highlighted that Hydra integrations are underway, while Ouroboros Leios is in the prototyping phase.

2. Usability and Utility: Enhancing Developer and User Experience

Beyond scaling, IO is pushing for developer-friendly enhancements and a more accessible blockchain experience. Key initiatives include:

• Multiple programming language support to attract more developers.
• Identity tools like Hyperledger Identus and privacy-focused protocol Midnight.
• Babel fees, which would allow users to pay transaction fees in any token, simplifying on-chain interactions.

These improvements aim to broaden ADA’s adoption by making the network easier to use for both developers and everyday users.

3. Interoperability and Extensibility: Connecting Cardano to a Multichain Future

IO envisions Cardano as the hub of a thriving multichain ecosystem, even integrating with Bitcoin. To enable this, the roadmap suggests:

• Layered node architecture and multi-resource consensus for cross-chain transactions.
• Hybrid DApps leveraging atomic cross-chain interactions.
• BitcoinOS partnership, which could position Cardano as a smart contract layer for Bitcoin.

By 2025, IO aims to explore merged mining and ways for Bitcoin holders to interact with Cardano DeFi while enabling private transactions through Midnight.

With decentralized governance now in place, Cardano’s next steps are in the hands of its community. IO’s roadmap lays out an ambitious vision for scalability, usability, and interoperability, but its success will depend on adoption and execution.

As Layer 2 solutions roll out, developer tools expand, and multichain integrations take shape, Cardano could solidify its position as a major blockchain player in the coming years.