Ethereum researchers have proposed adding native UTXO (Unspent Transaction Output) support to the network's execution layer. This suggestion has sparked a reaction from Charles Hoskinson, the founder of Cardano, who claimed on X that Cardano has been utilizing this model for over a decade.

In a tweet dated July 7, Hoskinson emphasized that his years of work on the eUTXO (Extended Unspent Transaction Output) model validate Cardano's pioneering role in this area. He remarked, “It’s not like I’ve been literally working on this topic for over 10 years of my life and launched a cryptocurrency that was number three on CoinMarketCap with millions of users to deploy it.” His comments reflect a broader tension between the two networks.

On the trading front, Cardano's ADA has shown better performance than Ethereum’s ETH in recent 24-hour comparisons, increasing by 0.7% compared to ETH's 0.4%.

Details of the Ethereum Proposal

The Ethereum research paper outlines a significant structural issue with the current account model, where each new address that receives ETH or an ERC-20 token generates permanent state storage. The proposed solution aims to implement native UTXOs for straightforward payment transactions, potentially reducing the permanent state burden by about 99.8% for those transactions.

Unlike Ethereum's existing model, UTXOs are designed to be created once and spent once, leaving no residual data on the network. The proposal, however, does not aim to replace Ethereum's account model but rather addresses a specific scalability challenge. It is important to note that the proposal has not yet been formalized as an Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP) and lacks a confirmed implementation schedule.

Hoskinson’s Position on UTXO Development

In his defense of Cardano's innovations, Hoskinson highlighted the unique features of Cardano's eUTXO model, which includes datums, redeemers, and script context. These elements allow smart contracts to operate as deterministic local state machines, minimizing the need for global blockchain state interaction. This mechanism ensures predictable transaction fees and enhances efficiency across UTXO sets.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice.