Cosmos Labs has launched an urgent search for external economists to redesign the ATOM currency in light of the difficulties facing the digital currency in prices.
The company stated that the Cosmos SDK has become a popular framework for launching blockchain networks, including projects associated with major institutions and government initiatives that are often cited as evidence of interest from Fortune 500 companies.
Why does Cosmos want to redesign ATOM?
However, since the program is open source, these users can deploy independent sovereign chains without paying fees or royalties to Cosmos Hub.
As a result, these founding developers use the core technology of the network without needing to own or interact with ATOM.
The blockchain development company seeks to change this reality by promoting a new "revenue-driven" model. This approach aims to monetize usage both within and outside the network.
The Cosmos team clarified that the goal of this research effort is not to design a new symbolic model from basic principles, but to provide research and design support for a revenue-driven model that reconciles the various potential revenue sources of ATOM with updates to the supply dynamics and inflation schedule for ATOM. It was noted that the benefit of ATOM in the end will come from these fees, whether through ATOM buybacks, staking rewards for ATOM, other mechanisms, or a combination of these, as stated in the announcement.
The initiative also indicates a strategic shift in the Cosmos ecosystem.
Cosmos Labs acknowledged that Interchain Security, a shared security framework that was promoted as a key factor for the value of ATOM, "failed to achieve market consensus."
The team clarified that Interchain Security is in the final phase of suspension, and that the economic structure of the Hub remains relatively separate from the broader activity in the Cosmos system. It confirmed that the ecosystem currently lacks a comprehensive fee model, aside from operational fees on the network.
These redesign efforts point to economic models closer to the norms of institutional programs, including consumption-based fees associated with usage rather than security rents.
However, implementing any proposal will face significant political constraints, as it must be approved by the Cosmos Hub DAO community, which has historically opposed actions deemed centralizing.
Cosmos Labs pointed to a previous proposal for a narrow margin inflation reduction of 3%. It clarified that this decision led to a sharp withdrawal of reserved assets, demonstrating how sensitive the economy of the symbolic currency is within the community.
Accordingly, the company stated that any successful proposal outlines potential revenue generation pathways, analyzes supply-side constraints, and provides practical guidance aligned with stakeholder interests. The request for proposals deadline is January 15.
At the same time, this move came as the price of ATOM fell by about 76% this year to reach a five-year low of around $2.1.
These price performances reflect significant pressure in the ecosystem, even as the Cosmos software suite gains greater popularity among blockchain developers and experimental institutional projects.
