Documentation Updates

site/docs/leios-comparison.md

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+# Ouroboros Leios vs. Top Blockchains
+
+Cardano’s upcoming *Ouroboros Leios* protocol promises to supercharge its scalability, targeting 100–1,000 transactions per second (TPS) while keeping its decentralized roots. But how does it fare against heavyweights like Solana, Ethereum, and Bitcoin, especially for use cases like microtransactions, DeFi, or voting? We’ve crafted a scorecard comparing these blockchains across seven key metrics - Throughput, Fee Predictability, Fee Loss Protection, Latency, Decentralization, Security, and Scalability. With a nod to Solana’s user experience (UX) struggles around fee loss, let’s see why Leios could shine.
+
+## Leios vs. Solana, Ethereum, Bitcoin
+
+We scored each blockchain on a 0–10 scale, with higher scores indicating better performance. Here’s how they stack up:
+
+| **Metric**              | **Leios (Cardano)** | **Solana** | **Ethereum** | **Bitcoin** |
+|-------------------------|---------------------|------------|--------------|-------------|
+| **Throughput**          | 8                  | 4          | 3            | 2           |
+| **Fee Predictability**  | 8                  | 5          | 2            | 6           |
+| **Fee Loss Protection** | 9                  | 3          | 4            | 7           |
+| **Latency**             | 5                  | 8          | 6            | 1           |
+| **Decentralization**    | 9                  | 4          | 7            | 8           |
+| **Security**            | 8                  | 7          | 8            | 9           |
+| **Scalability**         | 8                  | 6          | 5            | 3           |
+| **Total Score**         | **55/70**          | **37/70**  | **35/70**    | **36/70**   |
+
+## Scoring Criteria and Rationale
+
+### Scoring Criteria
+- **Throughput** - Transactions per second (TPS). 10 = 1,000+ TPS, 0 = ~1 TPS.
+- **Fee Predictability** - Fee consistency. 10 = fully deterministic, 0 = highly volatile.
+- **Fee Loss Protection** - Protection against fees for unprocessed transactions. 10 = no fees for failed/rejected Txs, 0 = frequent loss.
+- **Latency** - Time to final confirmation. 10 equals less than 30 sec, 0 equals greater than 30 min.
+- **Decentralization** - Validator/node count and governance. 10 = 1,000+ independent nodes, 0 = centralized.
+- **Security** - Attack resistance (e.g., 51% attack). 10 = proven secure, 0 = vulnerable.
+- **Scalability** - Growth without centralization. 10 = scales to 1,000+ TPS natively, 0 = no growth.
+
+### Leios (Cardano)
+- **Throughput (8)** - Leios targets 100–1,000 TPS via parallel Input Blocks and pipelining, a massive leap from Praos’ 5–10 TPS. Simulations show 1,000 TPS is feasible, but it’s still in development, so not a perfect 10.
+- **Fee Predictability (8)** - Leios softens Cardano’s strict determinism with solutions like collateralization, where winning transactions may pay slightly higher fees (~1–2 ADA vs. 0.2 ADA). Fees stay mostly predictable, unlike volatile markets.
+- **Fee Loss Protection (9)** - A proposed pre-validation certificate system rejects conflicting transactions before Input Block inclusion, ensuring no fees for unprocessed transactions. Minor conflict risks at 1,000 TPS prevent a 10.
+- **Latency (5)** - Finality takes ~3–5 minutes (1–3 with Peras), slower than competitors due to pipelined stages. Suitable for voting or supply chains but less ideal for DeFi’s instant needs.
+- **Decentralization (9)** - Retains Cardano’s ~3,000 stake pools, ensuring broad access via stake-weighted VRF. Slight centralization risks at high TPS keep it from 10.
+- **Security (8)** - Inherits Praos’ proven security against 50% stake attacks. Concurrent processing adds complexity, but rigorous analysis and endorsement thresholds maintain robustness. Not yet deployed, so not 10.
+- **Scalability (8)** - Scales to 1,000 TPS on L1 without sharding, preserving global state. Storage (~28 GB/year) and bandwidth costs need optimization, limiting to 8.
+
+### Solana
+- **Throughput (4)** - Delivers ~2,000–3,000 TPS (theoretical 65,000 TPS), but congestion drops effective TPS, hurting DeFi and microtransaction UX. Real-world issues lower the score.
+- **Fee Predictability (5)** - Localized fee markets keep fees low (~$0.00025), but spikes during congestion (e.g., NFT drops) create uncertainty, frustrating users.
+- **Fee Loss Protection (3)** - Dropped transactions during congestion (common in 2023–2024) cost fees without results, a major UX pain point. Jito and upgrades help but don’t eliminate losses.
+- **Latency (8)** - ~0.4-second block time offers fast finality, great for DeFi and voting, though dropped transactions can delay effective confirmation.
+- **Decentralization (4)** - ~2,000 validators, but high hardware needs concentrate control, risking censorship for identity or voting use cases.
+- **Security (7)** - Resilient to most attacks, but validator concentration and past outages (e.g., 2022) expose weaknesses. Less rigorous than Cardano’s peer-reviewed model.
+- **Scalability (6)** - High theoretical TPS, but congestion and centralization limit practical scaling. L2 or sharding isn’t native, unlike Leios’ L1 approach.
+
+### Ethereum
+- **Throughput (3)** - ~15–30 TPS (post-merge, pre-sharding). L2s (e.g., Arbitrum) boost TPS but add complexity, unsuitable for microtransactions or voting.
+- **Fee Predictability (2)** - Gas fees ($1–$100 during congestion) are volatile, disrupting DeFi and supply chain UX. L2s reduce costs but vary widely.
+- **Fee Loss Protection (4)** - Failed transactions (e.g., outbid gas) cost fees, frustrating users. L2s improve but don’t eliminate losses, impacting small transactions.
+- **Latency (6)** - ~12-second block time, ~1–2 minute finality. L2s can be faster but vary, less ideal for real-time voting or DeFi.
+- **Decentralization (7)** - ~500,000 validators post-merge, but L2 reliance and staking costs centralize some control. Less open than Cardano’s stake pools.
+- **Security (8)** - Proven secure post-merge, with a large validator base. L2s introduce risks, but the core chain is robust.
+- **Scalability (5)** - L2s and future sharding (post-2025) improve scalability, but complexity and fragmentation limit L1 potential compared to Leios.
+
+### Bitcoin
+- **Throughput (2)** - ~7 TPS, too low for microtransactions, DeFi, or identity. Lightning Network adds capacity but is complex for mass adoption.
+- **Fee Predictability (6)** - Fees (~$1–$5) vary with mempool size but are less volatile than Ethereum. Predictable for transfers but not complex use cases.
+- **Fee Loss Protection (7)** - Failed transactions rarely cost fees unless mempool is full. Lightning introduces risks, but the core chain protects users.
+- **Latency (1)** - ~10-minute block time, ~1-hour finality, unusable for real-time DeFi, voting, or supply chains.
+- **Decentralization (8)** - ~10,000 nodes, highly decentralized, but mining pools concentrate some control, less open than Cardano.
+- **Security (9)** - Most battle-tested, resisting attacks via PoW. Energy inefficiency doesn’t impact security score.
+- **Scalability (3)** - Limited by block size and PoW. Lightning helps but can’t scale to Leios’ TPS or support dApps.
+
+## Solana’s UX Context - A Fee Loss Pain Point
+
+Solana’s UX struggles with fee loss from dropped transactions, especially during congestion (e.g., NFT drops), where users pay ~$0.00025 without results, feeling like “playing roulette.” X posts highlight frustration, with users abandoning platforms after losses. Localized fee markets and smart wallets (e.g., Meso’s gasless UX) mitigate some issues, but dropped transactions persist, hurting trust for microtransactions and DeFi. Leios counters this with pre-validation certificates, rejecting conflicts before Input Block inclusion, ensuring no fees for unprocessed transactions. Its elastic capacity avoids Solana’s congestion, enhancing reliability for voting and supply chains, though its ~3–5 minute finality is slower but more predictable.
+
+## Why Leios Takes the Lead
+
+Leios tops the scorecard with 55/70, excelling in throughput (100–1,000 TPS), fee loss protection (no fees for rejections), and decentralization (~3,000 stake pools). This makes it ideal for microtransactions, DeFi, voting, identity, and supply chains, where reliability and trust matter. Solana (37/70) offers speed but falters on fee loss and centralization, Ethereum (35/70) on fees and complexity, and Bitcoin (36/70) on TPS and latency. Leios’ UX, with clear feedback and no-fee rejections, could outshine Solana’s dropped transaction woes, positioning Cardano as a user-friendly, scalable blockchain.
+
+## What’s Next?
+
+Leios is still in R&D, with testnets and community votes ahead to finalize its design. Want to weigh in? Share your thoughts on [Cardano’s forums](https://forum.cardano.org/). Curious how Leios could power your favorite use case? Let’s keep the conversation going!

site/docs/leios-cost-analysis.md

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+# Understanding Leios - A Look at Cost Estimates for Cardano’s Next Step
+
+At IOG, we’re thrilled about the Leios project, a major leap toward enhancing Cardano’s scalability and efficiency. During the April 2025 status meeting, we shared early cost estimates for running Leios nodes. Here’s a straightforward breakdown of those figures, showing what it might cost to operate Leios compared to the current Praos protocol and the potential revenue from transaction fees.
+
+## What is Leios, and Why Does It Matter?
+
+Leios is designed to supercharge Cardano’s transaction throughput, enabling the network to process far more transactions per second (TPS) efficiently. While the current Praos protocol produces one block every 20 seconds (~3.5 TPS for average-sized transactions), Leios introduces Input Blocks (IBs) that can scale up significantly—potentially supporting thousands of TPS. This is a game-changer for developers building decentralized applications (dApps) and for Cardano’s ecosystem growth.
+
+## Breaking Down the Costs
+
+Running a blockchain node involves costs like computing power, memory, storage, network data transfer (egress), and input/output operations (IOPS). The Leios team analyzed these across various cloud providers, comparing Leios to Praos at equivalent throughput (0.05 IB/s, or one Input Block every 20 seconds) and at higher rates up to 30 IB/s.
+
+- **At Praos-equivalent throughput (0.05 IB/s):**
+  - On premium providers like AWS or Google Cloud, a Leios node costs ~$90–$114/month, slightly more than Praos due to voting overhead.
+  - On budget-friendly providers like Linode or Hetzner, costs range from $15–$65/month, making Leios accessible for node operators.
+
+- **At higher throughput (e.g., 1 IB/s or 30 IB/s):**
+  - Costs scale with throughput. At 1 IB/s (~70 TPS for average transactions), AWS costs ~$233/month, while Hetzner stays at ~$32/month.
+  - At 30 IB/s (~2,100 TPS), costs range from $450–$1,000/month on Linode/Hetzner to $4,000–$5,000/month on AWS/Google Cloud.
+
+These are early estimates, and we’re actively researching ways to optimize costs. The choice of cloud provider significantly impacts expenses, giving operators flexibility to match their budgets.
+
+## Revenue Potential From Transaction Fees
+
+Leios’s higher throughput means more transactions, which boosts revenue from transaction fees. Cardano’s fee structure includes a fixed 0.155381 ADA plus 0.000044056 ADA per byte. For an average transaction (1,400 bytes), here’s the network’s potential revenue:
+
+- **0.05 IB/s (3.5 TPS):** ~1.97M ADA/month (~$887,000 at $0.45/ADA).
+- **1 IB/s (70 TPS):** ~39.4M ADA/month (~$17.7M).
+- **30 IB/s (2,100 TPS):** ~1.18B ADA/month (~$531M).
+
+Even modest throughput increases could cover infrastructure costs for Cardano’s ~10,000 nodes (including 3,000 stake pool operators and dApp nodes). For example, covering $800,000 in costs (at 0.05 IB/s) requires ~1.78M ADA, achievable with just 3.5 TPS of average transactions.
+
+## Looking Ahead Towards Sustainability
+
+As Cardano’s reserves decrease, transaction fees will play a bigger role in sustaining network rewards (~48M ADA/month today). By 2030, with reserves potentially halved, Leios’s high TPS could generate enough fees to maintain rewards. At 30 IB/s, the network could support over 11,790 TPS for smaller transactions, ensuring long-term sustainability.
+
+## What’s Next?
+
+These figures are preliminary, and the Leios team is working to make the protocol even more cost-efficient. Want to dive deeper? Check out the full calculations on our [GitHub repository](https://github.com/input-output-hk/ouroboros-leios/)!

site/docs/leios-use-cases.md

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+# 5 Game-Changing Use Cases Powered by Ouroboros Leios
+
+Cardano’s on the cusp of a major upgrade with *Ouroboros Leios*, a protocol designed to turbocharge its scalability while keeping its decentralized roots intact. Leios could push Cardano from a modest 5–10 transactions per second (TPS) to an impressive 100 TPS, with sights set on 1,000+ TPS. This leap, paired with Cardano’s focus on security, predictable fees, and 3,000 stake pools, opens doors to use cases that other blockchains like Bitcoin, Ethereum, or Solana can’t easily match. Let’s dive into five exciting possibilities that Leios could make reality.
+
+## 1. Global Microtransaction Ecosystems
+
+Imagine tipping a content creator in Africa a few cents for a blog post, paying a smart lock in Europe a nickel to unlock, or buying in-game items in Asia—all instantly, with fees so low they’re barely noticeable. Leios makes this global microtransaction economy possible.
+
+- **Why Leios Shines** - Leios’ 100–1,000 TPS can handle millions of tiny payments daily (think 8.6 million transactions a day at 100 TPS). Its high throughput could slash fees below the current ~0.34 ADA, making microtransactions economical. Plus, Leios’ partial transaction determinism—where you pay predictable fees or slightly more in rare conflicts—ensures you’re not stung by surprise costs, unlike Ethereum’s $1–$10 gas fees during busy times.
+- **Why Others Fall Short** - Bitcoin’s 7 TPS and $1–$5 fees are too slow and costly for microtransactions. Ethereum’s 15–30 TPS and fee volatility make low-value payments risky. Solana’s 65,000 TPS is fast but relies on a centralized validator set, risking censorship for global users.
+- **Real-World Vision** - A decentralized streaming platform where fans tip creators 0.05 ADA per view, processed instantly for thousands, without a middleman or fee spikes.
+
+## 2. Decentralized Supply Chain Tracking
+
+From farm to table or factory to pharmacy, tracking goods like food or vaccines across global supply chains demands speed, trust, and transparency. Leios could make Cardano the go-to blockchain for this.
+
+- **Why Leios Shines** - Supply chains generate thousands of updates daily (e.g., IoT sensor pings, shipping scans). Leios’ 100 TPS can handle this volume, unlike the current Cardano’s 10 TPS, which risks delays. Its elastic capacity ensures updates flow even during peak loads, vital for time-sensitive goods. With 3,000 stake pools, Cardano resists tampering, ensuring audit-ready records without a central authority.
+- **Why Others Fall Short** - Ethereum’s high fees and congestion make frequent updates pricey. Bitcoin’s low throughput can’t keep up with real-time tracking. Solana’s speed is offset by centralization risks, undermining trust for audits.
+- **Real-World Vision** - A pharmaceutical company tracks vaccine batches globally, recording each scan on-chain. Regulators verify every step, confident in Cardano’s tamper-proof, decentralized ledger.
+
+## 3. Mass-Scale DeFi with Time-Sensitive Transactions
+
+Decentralized finance (DeFi) thrives on speed—think liquidating a loan to avoid losses or snagging an arbitrage deal. Leios could make Cardano a DeFi powerhouse by handling thousands of users without hiccups.
+
+- **Why Leios Shines** - Leios’ elastic capacity prevents the congestion that bogs down Cardano today, ensuring time-sensitive transactions (e.g., liquidations) execute in ~3–5 minutes. Its partial determinism means predictable fees (or slightly higher in conflicts, like 1–2 ADA), avoiding Ethereum’s $10–$100 failed transaction costs. Cardano’s decentralized stake pools ensure fair access, unlike Solana’s concentrated validators.
+- **Why Others Fall Short** - Ethereum’s delays and fee spikes during DeFi surges (like 2021’s gas wars) frustrate users. Solana’s speed comes with centralization risks, eroding trust. Bitcoin lacks DeFi-capable smart contracts.
+- **Real-World Vision** - A Cardano-based DEX like SundaeSwap processes 1,000 trades per second during a market crash, with liquidations finalized fast, keeping users in control.
+
+## 4. Decentralized Identity for Large Populations
+
+Imagine giving millions in developing nations secure, self-sovereign digital IDs for voting, healthcare, or education. Leios could supercharge Cardano’s Atala PRISM to manage identities at population scale.
+
+- **Why Leios Shines** - Leios’ 100 TPS can support millions of daily identity updates (e.g., credential issuance, verifications), far beyond Praos’ 10 TPS. Lower fees make frequent updates affordable, unlike Ethereum’s costly gas. Cardano’s decentralization ensures no single entity controls sensitive data, a must for trust in identity systems.
+- **Why Others Fall Short** - Ethereum’s fees and throughput limit mass adoption. Bitcoin lacks smart contract flexibility. Solana’s centralization risks data control by a few validators, problematic for sovereign IDs.
+- **Real-World Vision** - A government issues digital IDs to 10 million citizens, with daily verifications for healthcare or voting recorded on-chain, secure and low-cost.
+
+## 5. Real-Time Voting Systems
+
+From national elections to Cardano’s own governance votes (like CIPs), secure, transparent voting needs speed and trust. Leios could make Cardano the backbone for real-time, tamper-proof voting.
+
+- **Why Leios Shines** - Leios’ 100 TPS can handle thousands of votes per second (8.6 million daily), enabling instant results for millions, unlike Praos’ slower pace. Its censorship resistance ensures votes aren’t delayed during high turnout. Stake-based voting (used in Leios’ Endorsement Blocks) guarantees tamper-proof outcomes, unlike centralized systems.
+- **Why Others Fall Short** - Ethereum’s congestion slows vote processing during peaks. Bitcoin’s throughput can’t scale. Solana’s centralization risks vote manipulation by validators.
+- **Real-World Vision** - Cardano’s DReps cast millions of governance votes in real-time, finalized in ~3–5 minutes, ensuring a transparent, secure process.
+
+## Why Leios Stands Out
+
+Leios isn’t just about speed—it’s about balancing scale, reliability, and trust. Its 100–1,000 TPS lets thousands of apps coexist without clogging up, unlike Ethereum’s congestion or Bitcoin’s limits. Its elastic capacity handles spikes, perfect for time-sensitive DeFi or voting. Cardano’s 3,000 stake pools keep it decentralized, unlike Solana’s validator risks. And its partial determinism—where fees stay mostly predictable—beats Ethereum’s fee volatility, making microtransactions or identity updates user-friendly.
+
+## The Road Ahead
+
+Leios is still in R&D, with simulations and testnets on the horizon, as π Lanningham notes. Its success hinges on adoption—businesses and developers must build on Cardano’s new capacity. Challenges like transaction conflicts (e.g., double-spending risks) are being tackled with solutions like collateralization or pre-validation certificates, ensuring reliability. If Cardano’s community—stake pool operators, DReps, and you—embraces Leios, these use cases could redefine what blockchains can do.
+
+Got ideas for other Leios-powered applications? Want to dive deeper into one of these? Share your thoughts on [Cardano’s forums](https://forum.cardano.org/). Let’s shape the future of Cardano together!