Cardano may be positioning itself to overtake Ethereum as the leading Layer-1 blockchain platform. Long dismissed as a “ghost chain” due to its cautious development pace and academic foundation, Cardano has recently emerged as one of the most active networks in terms of developer engagement, even surpassing Ethereum in a key metric: GitHub commits.

New figures from the blockchain analytics platform Cryptometheus reveal that Cardano recorded over 21,000 GitHub commits across 550 repositories in the last 12 months. This not only places it ahead of Ethereum, which saw just under 21,000 commits in the same timeframe, but it also challenges the long-standing perception that Cardano lacks meaningful development activity. These numbers show that Cardano’s developer ecosystem is alive and expanding, with 12 core projects and 36 ecosystem contributors actively building across more than 4,200 repositories. For a platform once accused of being stagnant, this surge in participation sends a clear message: Cardano is not just surviving, it is quietly thriving.

The implications of this shift are significant. While the spotlight in recent months has been fixed on the competition between Ethereum and Solana, Cardano has steadily carved a space for itself. Unlike other platforms that rely on aggressive marketing and fast-paced updates, Cardano has taken a methodical and research-driven approach, focusing on long-term sustainability over short-term hype. This recent uptick in development reflects the growing confidence of both the project’s contributors and its wider community.

On the price front, Cardano’s ADA token was recently trading at around $0.69, showing a slight dip amid broader market fluctuations. Ethereum also saw a modest decline, hovering around $1,806. Despite these short-term movements, market analysts remain optimistic about Cardano’s long-term potential. According to recent projections from Token Talk, ADA could see a 100% increase during the current market cycle, with a possible long-term valuation of up to $10 by the year 2029. These forecasts are fueled not only by technical analysis but also by the network’s increasing utility and growing base of developers.

Adding to the buzz, Cardano’s founder Charles Hoskinson made headlines with a bold prediction about Ethereum’s future. In a recent interview on X (formerly Twitter), Hoskinson expressed doubts about Ethereum’s ability to sustain its dominance over the next decade. He suggested that Ethereum’s reliance on Layer-2 scaling solutions could fragment the user experience, ultimately leading to a decline in its user base. He also predicted that as users seek simpler and more scalable options, many will migrate to platforms like Cardano or even explore decentralized finance opportunities on Bitcoin.

These comments, while controversial, reflect a broader shift in sentiment. Cardano is no longer being dismissed as an underperformer. Instead, it’s gaining serious consideration as a viable long-term alternative in the Layer-1 blockchain space. If the current momentum continues, Cardano could rewrite its legacy from that of a slow starter to one of the decade’s most remarkable comebacks in the world of blockchain.

As the crypto landscape continues to evolve, one thing is clear: Cardano’s recent surge in development activity is more than just a statistical anomaly. It may be the beginning of a major reshuffle in the Layer-1 hierarchy—one that few saw coming, but that may change everything.