Key Highlights
- Cardano’s Dijkstra hard fork planning continues with its previously agreed scope and target dates intact.
- The upgrade follows Van Rossem, the first Cardano hard fork approved entirely through on-chain governance.
- Intersect has launched a Dijkstra readiness tracker to monitor node compatibility, testing and ecosystem preparedness.
Cardano is approaching a September 1 governance deadline that could affect the functioning of its Constitutional Committee as the network prepares for the upcoming Dijkstra hard fork.
According to Intersect’s August 14 weekly update, the scope and target dates for Dijkstra remain unchanged. Development teams are now focusing on ecosystem readiness, node compatibility and the potential impact of the upgrade on stake pool operators and other network participants.
The latest phase follows the Van Rossem hard fork, which activated Cardano Protocol Version 11 on July 18 after receiving approval through the network’s three governance bodies.
Cardano’s governance shift sets context for Dijkstra
Cardano’s latest upgrade planning follows a broader shift toward community-led protocol development. In July, the Van Rossem hard fork became the first Cardano upgrade to be approved through the network’s on-chain governance process, receiving 77.63% DRep support and 52.7% SPO approval.
Around the same period, Cardano began moving node development toward a community-led model, with independent teams expected to maintain implementations in Haskell, Rust, and Go as the transition progresses toward 2027. The changes provide context for the current Dijkstra planning process, which is focused on coordinating the next hard fork and preparing the network for further technical developments.
Dijkstra planning moves into readiness testing
Intersect said the Hard Fork Working Group is now working on a broader readiness process for Dijkstra.
An initial Dijkstra readiness tracker has been created and is expected to include more detailed criteria, readiness calculations and testnet reporting as development progresses.
The goal is to give stake pool operators, node developers and other ecosystem participants a clearer picture of what needs to be completed before the upgrade.
Alternative node teams have also been invited to participate in the weekly Hard Fork Working Group discussions.
Amaru node targets mainnet block production
One of the projects contributing to Cardano’s node diversity is Amaru, whose team reported that its implementation is currently relay-capable and syncing to the network tip.
The team is targeting mainnet block production in November 2026.
Amaru is also working with Antithesis on testing Cardano’s node software and improving the reproducibility of failures.
The progress provides another data point for Cardano’s effort to move toward an ecosystem where multiple teams can maintain and operate network infrastructure.
Dijkstra sets the stage for Leios
Dijkstra is also connected to Cardano’s longer-term scaling roadmap.
According to the Haskell node team, Leios will enter a bootstrapping phase after the Dijkstra hard fork, with stake pool operators expected to register BLS keys as part of that process.
Leios is intended to increase Cardano’s transaction-processing capacity and improve the network’s ability to handle higher levels of activity.
That makes Dijkstra an intermediate step between the current Conway-era infrastructure and Cardano’s planned scaling work.
Governance remains part of the technical roadmap
Protocol development is continuing alongside active governance decisions.
Intersect reported that the Update Constitutional Committee 2026 action was still awaiting DRep and SPO approval as of August 14.
DRep participation stood at about 30.04%, against a required 67%, while SPO participation was approximately 1.69%, against a 51% requirement. The action expires on September 1, 2026.
The elected committee members have already completed the election and audit process, but on-chain ratification remains necessary before the new committee can take its seats.
A failure to approve the action before the existing terms expire could leave the committee below Cardano’s required minimum size, potentially limiting parts of the governance process.
Cardano’s next test Is execution
Cardano enters the next phase with a different development structure than it had during earlier upgrades.
Van Rossem demonstrated that a protocol change could pass through the network’s on-chain governance system. The shift toward independent node teams is changing how the underlying software is maintained, while Dijkstra will test how effectively those participants can coordinate around another major upgrade.
For now, Intersect says the Dijkstra scope and target dates remain unchanged. The immediate focus is therefore less on announcing new features and more on node readiness, testing, governance and ecosystem coordination before the next hard fork.
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