Cosmos

The co-founders of Tendermint, which is a core contributor to the Cosmos network, were Jae Kwon, Zarko Milosevic and Ethan Buchman. While Jae Kwon is still listed as the principal architect, he stepped down as CEO in 2020 and has been replaced by Peng Zhong. The entire board of directors has also undergone a substantial refresh, with the goal of enhancing the developer experience, building an enthusiastic community, and creating educational resources for Cosmos.

Cosmos aims to solve some of the key problems facing the blockchain industry, such as slow transaction times, high costs, lack of scalability, and environmental concerns associated with proof-of-work protocols like Bitcoin. Cosmos offers an ecosystem of interconnected blockchains with an Interblockchain Communication (IBC) protocol, allowing different blockchain networks to communicate with each other and preventing fragmentation in the industry. Cosmos also has a modular framework that aims to make it easier for developers to build decentralized applications.

The Cosmos Hub, the flagship blockchain of the Cosmos network, is secured through a hybrid proof-of-stake (PoS) algorithm. ATOM tokens are earned through this PoS mechanism and play a role in the network's governance. The three-layer architecture of Cosmos (application, networking, and consensus) also contributes to the overall security and stability of the network.