Cardano Founder Unveils AI-Powered Virtual City for Crypto Economy Testing

Charles Hoskinson, the founder of Cardano and CEO of Input Output Global (IOG), recently shared an expansive vision for the future of Cardano, its privacy-focused sidechain Midnight, and his growing interest in AI and digital governance. During a surprise AMA, Hoskinson outlined several bold initiatives aimed at reshaping the Cardano ecosystem and the broader crypto and technology landscape.

One of the most notable revelations was Hoskinson's plan to develop a virtual city powered by AI agents that simulate real-world human behavior in a crypto economy. This digital metropolis, inspired by the Altera project, will serve as a testing ground for economic policies, regulatory interactions, DeFi integrations, and the scalability of blockchain-based systems in a live yet controlled environment. Hoskinson described it as a place to beta-test stablecoins, model interactions between regulators and malicious actors, and move beyond the traditional TPS metric toward a more nuanced measure he called “concurrent cities.”

“It would be a really cool exercise to run a virtual city. You can stop thinking of TPS and you can start thinking of your DeFi ecosystem as cities run concurrently,” Hoskinson stated. “Many cities can run concurrently comfortably in this meaning that there’s no disruption to the commerce inside the system.”

Hoskinson also provided an update on Midnight, Cardano’s upcoming privacy-centric blockchain. With a focus on sectors like healthcare, Midnight will feature private stablecoins and trustless bridges to Cardano, allowing seamless and secure asset transfers. He emphasized that the native token for Midnight will launch with what he claims is the fairest and decentralized distribution model in crypto history. “It’s the most decentralized launch in the history of the cryptocurrency space. I am very proud of it. It’s a new distribution model. I think you guys are all going to like it,” he stated.

Looking toward Bitcoin integration, Hoskinson teased an infrastructure project called BitVMX, timed ahead of the Bitcoin 2025 conference. He said the initiative will connect Bitcoin’s liquidity to Cardano’s ecosystem using Hydra-powered fast finality and lending protocols that offer native Bitcoin yield. He also suggested a future where Bitcoin Ordinals are integrated with Cardano’s NFT infrastructure, enhancing both networks.

Hoskinson expressed frustration with the current decentralized structure’s inability to make timely decisions on governance. He called for a hybrid model, introducing an executive function complementing the community’s voice. He also preemptively addressed the forthcoming audit on Cardano’s early token distribution, dismissing online allegations of misconduct as politically motivated gaslighting.

Hoskinson's ambitious vision for Cardano reflects the platform's commitment to innovation and growth. By focusing on AI and privacy, Cardano aims to stay ahead of the curve in the rapidly evolving blockchain industry. The upcoming developments and the full audit of IOG are expected to further solidify Cardano's position as a leading blockchain platform, capable of meeting the needs of its users and the broader cryptocurrency community.