Cardano has laid out Dijkstra, its next major upgrade, rolling out in two phases to make the network faster and more scalable.

Phase 1, targeted for late 2026, brings Leios, which lets Cardano process far more transactions at once and lifts throughput. Phase 2, planned for 2027, adds Peras, which speeds up finality so blocks confirm and payments settle much faster. Both phases go through testnet and on-chain governance approval before they reach mainnet.

Why it matters: more speed and capacity help Cardano stay competitive with faster chains and make it more usable for real apps and payments, without giving up its community-governed rollout.