Overview
As Charles described in his Ocean, Island and Pond approach, there are many developers globally using different programming languages. Instead of asking these developers to retrain in the Haskell language, a better possibility would be to create bridges to allow all developers access into the Cardano ecosystem, coding in their own preferred language.
Introducing Blockfrost, a project by Five Binaries (itself an infrastructure development company focusing on creating customized highly reliable solutions for blockchain-powered industries). Blockfrost contributes to the creation of APIs for Cardano decentralized blockchain. It is an instant, public and freely Accessible API that removes infrastructure obstacles for developers so that they can build dapps for Cardano.
As of time of writing and following their Fund 4 success , Blockfrost has just announced new SDKs for Android (Kotlin) and Apple (Swift) developers. This is on top of the existing SDKs for a range of programming languages (Python, Java, Haskell etc)
Building, accessing and processing information stored on blockchain is never easy, and these new SDKs provides a new connection to developers which vastly reduced complexities on the infrastructure end, allowing developers to focus their attention on actual building of dapps on the blockchain
Seen these cute astronauts around? They are the famed Spacebudz NFTs, and they are powered by the Blockfrost APIs
Blockfrost also worked on a Yoroi Blockfrost API, allowing developers the freedom to use all the features, improve upon it via future updates and without having to set up the full infrastructure. Should developers feel that the technology is out of reach, time and resource-intensive, we may end up in a scenario where we have a popular wallet that is not serving the needs of users, and is unable to perform systemic upgrades ( sounding a death knell).
What's next? Huat's thoughts
In the blockchain space, there needs to be ongoing innovation as the space is constantly changing. Without innovation and the right tools kits, users/ developers can easily migrate to the platforms that serve their needs and offer more applications that allow them to learn, trade, and earn. This will in turn reduce the adaptability of Cardano and its ability to market/attract users.
Aligning with its vision to allow new developers to have an almost barrier-free entry to learning/ developing/ building on Cardano, Blockfrost existing price plans include an attractive free first tier that allows individuals 50,000 requests/day, with 100MB IPFS storage (limit to 1 project). However, its other price tiers are competitively priced and may allow more options for the seasoned developers.
We firmly believe in the Blockfrost Project. As such, they are well deserving to earn one of the spots on our showcase initiative. Do give Blockfrost a visit if you are interested in their work and look out for them in the upcoming Fund 6. Connect with them via below:
