What is Cosmos?
Cosmos is a decentralized network of independent blockchains that are powered by BFT consensus algorithms such as the Tendermint consensus. In other words, Cosmos (ATOM) is an ecosystem of blockchain networks that can scale and interoperate with each other. This degree of interoperability can allow many different blockchain networks to coexist with their own advantages and specialized use cases. It was developed by Ethan Buchman and Jae Kwon in 2014, with the intention of creating an “Internet of Blockchains”.
While Cosmos (ATOM) is a complete technology stack that allows different blockchain networks to connect and share data with each other, it is capable of offering even more. Cosmos also offers a streamlined development process that assists developers to create their own custom blockchain in months or weeks instead of years.
Cosmos has expanded its ecosystem with new partners and projects over the last few years. For instance, it has begun projects with Binance Chain and E-Money. IRISnet was built the Cosmos SDK While the loom project has also shifted to the Cosmos network from Ethereum due to the Tendermint BFT algorithm’s many features.
Cosmos has recently integrated decentralized finance by creating the Crescent Network (formerly Gravity DEX), which is an automated market maker (AMM). Cosmos’ features increase the chances of the Crescent Network becoming one of the most efficient automated market makers (AMMs) in the crypto market.
ATOM Price Trends
In 2017, Cosmos raised $16 million in an initial coin offering, where roughly 20% of the funds went to the founders and developers. The Cosmos protocol controls the token’s annual inflation rate, which is 7% to 2%. The annual inflation rate fluctuates automatically based on how much money is being “staked” at a particular time.
ATOM’s price hovered between $2 to $9 in the 2019 to 2020 period. Its price reached a peak of $29.44 in May and hit its all-time high of $44.54 four months later. ATOM’s price dropped briefly before increasing to $43.22 in October 2021.
How Cosmos (ATOM) Works?
Cosmos works similarly to Polkadot but also seeks to create an ecosystem of blockchain networks. It prioritizes the sovereignty of independent blockchains which means they should have their own governance, run their own validators, and secure themselves. Three elements make up the Cosmos technology.
- Tendermint – A consensus protocol that allows devs to create a PoS blockchain that is secure, scalable, and fast.
- The Inter-Blockchain Communication protocol (IBC) – A system that allows different blockchains to communicate with each other.
- The Cosmos SDK – This allows the devs to build applications on blockchains based on Tendermint.
Cosmos uses the Tendermint consensus protocol created by Jae Kwon in 2014. The Cosmos ecosystem allows blockchain networks to communicate with each other by using a hub and zone model. For instance, if a user wanted to connect Ethereum and Bitcoin through Cosmos, both BTC and ETH will have to connect to their respective zones. The Ethereum and Bitcoin zones would then connect to a hub, through which Bitcoin and Ether can be transferred.
Cosmos Key Events
The following are some of the notable events from the inception of the Cosmos cryptocurrency project.
- Tendermint co-founders Jae Kwon and Ethan Buchman came up with the white paper entitled “Cosmos: A Network of Distributed Ledgers” in 2016.
- Cosmos raised $17 million in the first 29 minutes of its initial token sale. In April 2017.
- Game of Stakes is launched on the Cosmos network for the first time in December 2018.
- Cosmos launched an initial version of the project along with Cosmos Hub in early 2019.
- Cosmos launches its official Mainnet in March 2019.
- In February 2020, the Cosmos team suffers a split and founder Jae Kwon resigns as CEO.
- Cosmos forms a partnership with Num to bring anonymous credentials to its ecosystem in September 2020
- In February 2021, Cosmos launched the Stargate upgrade, activating IBC.
Cosmos (ATOM) Mining
Contrary to the majority of cryptocurrencies, ATOM, the native token of Cosmos cannot be mined in the same way. Like in PoW networks, the computational power of the nodes does not decide the mining rewards. Instead, nodes are rewarded based on the number of ATOM tokens they have staked.
To stake tokens, a user must lock in their ATOM tokens for a certain period to allow the network to use the locked tokens for securing itself. The user gets the ATOM tokens back along with additional tokens as an incentive after the staking period is over. If any node is caught being dishonest, it is penalized which results in the loss of ATOM tokens.
btc
eth
xrp
bnb
sol
ltc
polygon
cardano
tron
doge
USD
INR
JPY
CNY
GBP
EUR
Bitcoin
BTC
Ethereum
ETH
Tether
USDT
Binance Coin
BNB
USDC
USDC
XRP
XRP
OKB
OKB
Cardano
ADA
Dogecoin
DOGE
Dai
DAI
TRON
TRX
