Cardano Creator Unveils Midnight Launch Strategy

crypthub

about 5 hours ago

Midnight Network Overview

Charles Hoskinson unveiled Midnight as a privacy‑and‑identity layer that extends existing blockchains rather than competes with them. It aims to interoperate with Ethereum, Solana, Bitcoin, XRP and others, letting users pay in each network’s token. The project is positioned as the next generational layer for crypto.

Four‑Stage Launch Plan

The rollout follows four gates: token liquidity (NIGHT) starts on December 8 2025, creating market price signals. A federated mainnet with mixed IOG and external operators is planned for Q1 2026, allowing early app deployment. An incentivized testnet in Q2 2026 will onboard stake pools and stress‑test the consensus, followed by a hard‑fork to the final mainnet later in 2026 for full cross‑chain privacy services.

Token Economics and Privacy Goals

NIGHT holders generate DUST, a consumable fuel that can be exchanged for other chain tokens or delegated so users can interact without owning crypto. This “capacity exchange” seeks to bring Web2‑style frictionless payments to Web3. Hoskinson argues that AI‑driven data mining makes privacy essential, and Midnight will use selective disclosure and zero‑knowledge proofs to protect user identity.

Governance and Ecosystem Position

Midnight’s code governance will be hosted by the Linux Foundation and operated by a KPI‑driven Midnight Foundation for faster decision‑making. Hoskinson describes a “crypto triumvirate”: Bitcoin as trust/value, Cardano as computation, and Midnight as privacy/identity. The roadmap aims to move from plan to live infrastructure by the end of 2026.