Cardano is now one step closer to NFTs and other De-Fi uses with the Alonzo White testnet.
IOHK, the blockchain team behind Cardano, announced that the Alonzo test net has officially changed from Blue to White on July 15, bringing about the long-awaited expansion of the ecosystem to functional smart contracts.
Although the previous testingnet (also known as Alonzo Blue) did provide some smart contract features for insiders, they were not available to everyone. The upgrade yesterday will allow approximately 500 validators, stake-pool operators, and developers access to these features moving forward.
Alonzo White will run for between two and four weeks, before it upgrades to the final testnet of its current development phase known as Alonzo Purple.
Despite the backlash from some in the blockchain community Charles Hoskinson, Cardano founder, recently stated in a YouTube video that everything is still going according to the project’s development roadmap. He noted that more than $10M in NFTs has been sold across the Cardano network, along with “tens and thousands of assets”. Developers will be able launch dApps, NFTs, and other applications once Alonzo White has been released to the mainnet.
Following the Alonzo White announcement, a NFT and DeFi Marketplace called Spores Network launched a $2.3 million fundraise. Cardano’s lower transaction cost, lower carbon footprints and high transaction throughput will allow the company to bring NFTs closer to mainstream users.
Cardano and its users could see big gains from more NFTs, as more artists and companies join the market for NFTs, like Dolce and Gabbana and a fantasy football platform.
