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Algorand - a deep dive
Content: I'll preface this by saying ALGO, like all blockchain projects, is not perfect (e.g. it has less-than-optimal tokenomics) but that I'm going to focus on its merits.

Solving the Blockchain Trilemma

Algorand is a blockchain network (i.e. like ETH, ADA, SOL) and a solution to the "blockchain trilemma" - the ability of a network to be simultaneously scalable, secure and decentralised. ALGO's transactions per second (TPS) is 1k, with a 4s finality. Transactions cost 0.001 ALGO and the network already offers L1 smart contracts. However, the network will be upgraded in Q3-Q4 2021 to 45k/s TPS and 2.5s finality, ranking it toward the top for speed and scalability (Source). ALGO is currently experiencing ~1m transactions per day, placing it close to ETH in usage.

Main Conclusion: ALGO is, along with other projects, building and pioneering 'Blockchain 3.0'.

Academic Rigor

Algorand was founded by the Turing-award-winning, MIT professor Silvio Micali - and is backed by an excellent team with solid peer-reviewed academic prowess and publication record (Source 1) (Source 2). Silvio Micali conceived of and pioneered zero-knowledge proofs (among many other concepts) - a key and integral part of many cryptocurrencies. ALGO's respectable and trustworthy team boosts ALGO's chances of mass adoption, especially in the financial/institutional sectors - which appears to be ALGO's key target demographic.

Main Conclusion: ALGO's reliability, technology and ability to form partnerships is bolstered by the prestige and talent of its team.

Pure Proof-of-Stake

Algorand uses pure proof-of-stake (PPoS) as a consensus mechanism, which employs algorithmic randomness to achieve decentralisation + security. PPoS differs from regular, delegated PoS (dPoS) in a number of ways, including:

* No pooled validators (i.e. holders do not pledge their coins to a minority of super-validators). Theoretically, this minimises the drive toward centralisation that dPoS suffers from.
* ALGO node running is permissionless (i.e. anybody with >1 ALGO can run a node, be a validator and participate in consensus).
* PPoS is extremely lightweight (an ALGO node can be run on a low energy, $50 Raspberry Pi 4 - no expensive hardware or upfront cost is required).

A key feature of PPoS is the use of a randomised, weighted lottery that selects validators - known as VRF. This prevents any malicious actor(s) from attacking the network since the identities of the currently selected validators (who must be corrupted in order to carry out an attack) are not known until the block is already finalised. At 1-4k validators, PPoS is paradoxically superior to dPoS in terms of decentralisation - even if the latter had 50,000+ nodes. This is because validators under the dPoS system are long-lived and known. By contrast, ALGO's random selections vary on both a round and subround basis - that is, block proposers, voters, vote certifiers all vary, across all steps of creating a block - making it incredibly secure and decentralised.

Main Conclusion: ALGO is fast, scalable, secure while remaining decentralised.

Staking Rewards & Governance

ALGO currently offers liquid and seamless staking with an APY of ~5.75% - you simply hold ALGO in a non-custodial wallet and there is no lock-up period. On Oct 1st 2021, governance is launching and this will gradually replace staking. In exchange for voting on proposals, you will be rewarded with 7.5-33% APY (depending on the number of participants). For the initial 3 months, this APY will be in addition to the passive 5.75%, meaning you could theoretically earn up to ~38.75% APY. Governance will not only [...]