Input Output Group (IOG) has put Cardano’s maintenance layer front and center in its newest governance pitch, arguing that the network’s future upgrades, apps and everyday operations hinge on sustained funding for core infrastructure work.
In a post on X on April 30, 2026 — accompanied by a short video — IOG bluntly summarized the case: “Everything on Cardano depends on this.” The initiative, led by Michael Karg, targets three core areas:
- Rigorous testing / QA and performance tuning
- Bug fixes and security patches
- Node, network and community support
The proposal, published on the Momentum Cardano platform, frames maintenance not as an optional expense but as the baseline that enables all other projects. It requests ₳62,134,630 from the treasury to fund “core platform maintenance, support, and operational infrastructure for the Cardano network” across Q3 2026 through Q1 2027.
What the funding would cover
IOG says the program will deliver continuous, operational work across a broad slate of tasks — not a set of milestone-bound feature releases. Specific areas called out include:
- Node bugfixes, architecture and component maintenance (Cardano API/CLI, Plutus Core updates, DB-Sync consistency)
- DevOps and infrastructure (CI/CD systems, compiler and platform compatibility)
- Monitoring and observability (mainnet monitoring, global mempool data, performance metrics)
- QA and performance engineering (benchmarking, ledger performance)
- Security reviews and incident management
- Documentation, open-source support and GitHub issue triage
- Testnet and release support
IOG emphasizes transparency: disaster recovery plans, security reviews, monitoring data and performance metrics would be published so the community can track progress. The proposal stresses that these deliverables run in parallel for the full funded period rather than being gated behind sequential milestones.
Why IOG thinks maintenance deserves the biggest line item
The core argument is straightforward: without a stable, well-maintained base layer, new capabilities and third‑party projects cannot be delivered safely. “Every proposal in this portfolio depends on one thing: a stable, reliable, operational Cardano network. Maintenance is the foundation everything else is built on,” the proposal states, noting that Cardano “powers billions of dollars in value and thousands of applications across a global user base.”
IOG also directly answers a predictable criticism about the size of the ask: maintenance is the largest line item because “everything else depends on it,” from stake pool operators to dApp developers and everyday transactions.
Stake pool operators weigh in
Christos Palaskas, operator of the Skepsis Pool, reinforces the operational perspective: “I’ve been running my stake pool Skepsis for 5+ years now. There have been numerous occasions where improvements to the node were welcomed with relief. There have been memory footprint improvements, security fixes, new features.” He warned that continued node maintenance is essential “or we will not survive the next storm.”
Market note
At press time, ADA was trading at $0.2476.
Bottom line
IOG’s proposal reframes maintenance as strategic infrastructure investment: a continuous, transparent program designed to keep Cardano stable and secure so the broader ecosystem can innovate without risking the base layer. The community will now weigh that argument against the ₳62.13M treasury ask as governance discussion continues.
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