IOTA Coordicide: Developer Hans Moog sees “breakthrough” on the way to decentralization

Originally posted here.
By: guido

Overview

The decentralization of the Tanglenet, which is the goal of IOTA, has failed for years due to problems in the development work. Now IOTA developer […]

The Post

The decentralization of the Tanglenet, which is the goal of IOTA, has failed for years due to problems in the development work. Now IOTA developer Hans Moog says a “breakthrough” has been achieved.

In the official archive of IOTA, the term of “coordicide” was coined in November 2018 probably for the first time in a blog post . Under this working title, the IOTA Foundation has thus been working for years to abolish the central coordinator in Tanglenet and thus implement the iron principle of decentralization for cryptocurrencies in IOTA as well. Progress on Coordicide (IOTA 2.0) was announced at least as often as setbacks. Investors, meanwhile, increasingly understood that without decentralization, IOTA cannot stand a real chance with growth sectors of the crypto industry such as DeFi and smart contracts/DApps. Hans Moog, publicly perceived as the chief developer at IOTA, has now raised hopes for a happy ending via Twitter.

So … after a few days of catching up with work, today I will finally have some time for Twitter

I wanted to use the chance to give everybody a little status update about the progress in goshimmer and what we have been working on in the last 2-3 months.

A Thread …

— Hans Moog (@hus_qy) March 10, 2022

This is because Hans Moog summarizes what has happened in the engine room at the IOTA Foundation in terms of decentralization. He is apparently referring to the period since November 2021, when Moog proudly spoke of a “milestone” at Coordicide. Now he admits that the theoretical solutions in the consensus mechanism for an IOTA without a central coordinator have not worked in tests. The consensus mechanism for an IOTA 2.0 had caused setbacks before. But now a “breakthrough” has been achieved, writes Hans Moog. For the first time since he has been involved in IOTA, there is a clear picture of how the consensus mechanism should work in detail and how the environment must be programmed for it. He has never been so positively “excited” about IOTA technology, Moog added.

Decentralized IOTA – perhaps realistic in 2022 after all?

The IOTA Foundation stopped publishing concrete timelines for development work in May 2021. It was probably tired of being reminded again and again of delays. Currently, for example, in addition to the pending Coordicide, the continued lack of apps for mobile versions of the official IOTA wallet Firefly are a reason for disappointment. Moog is honest enough to describe how, when working on the GoShimmer node software for a decentralized IOTA, the time needed for solutions turned from weeks to months because of the consensus mechanism.

Currently, “a bit of work” is needed to incorporate the breakthrough into code, and after that – Moog said – there are about a dozen more concrete subtopics to come. But he sees the challenge for a decentralized IOTA now as more programming work than a theoretical search for solutions. The applause from the IOTA community for this forecast is accordingly effusive for Moog. We did the calendrical math in the fall of 2021 and, based on statements from IOTA CEO Dominik Schiener, for example, raised doubts about a decentralized Tanglenet in 2022.

Conclusion: IOTA without a central coordinator – will the wish come true?

To be honest: Based on years of experience with the IOTA Foundation, we have come to view “breakthroughs”, “milestones”, “decisive progress” and similar vocabulary with skepticism. What remains clear: In the competition among free cryptocurrencies, a centrally coordinated IOTA cannot survive. But Moog is regarded as an “honest man” and thus at least new optimism for an IOTA 2.0 aka Coordicide can be understood.

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