$ADA Cardano is a decentralized, open-source blockchain platform that uses a proof-of-stake (PoS) consensus mechanism called Ouroboros. It's known for its academic and scientific approach to blockchain development.

Ticker: ADA

Founder: Charles Hoskinson (co-founder of Ethereum)

Launched: 2017

Network Type: Layer 1 blockchain

Smart Contracts: Enabled since Alonzo upgrade (2021)