Welcome to Intersect’s update #107

 The van Rossem upgrade continues its progress toward a stable release, the 2026 on-chain budget process is ready for live proposal submissions, and committee elections are generating strong interest and engagement across the membership. Alongside these developments, the Constitutional Committee election process is preparing to launch, new governance tooling has been demonstrated, and a Plutus Cost Model update is live on the Preview network. This week's update covers all of this, along with the latest on governance actions, delivery assurance, and upcoming community events. 

 Contributors: Bosko M, Kevin H, Hard Fork Working Group, Parameter Committee, Intersect Technical Steering Committee  

Cardano Upgrades 

The van Rossem upgrade is nearing a stable release as the team addresses the performance regressions identified in earlier builds.

Final benchmarking for Node v10.7.1 has begun, with a pre-release for community testing available. This keeps the van Rossem upgrade on track for an indicative Mainnet enactment in late June 2026.

To ensure a smooth transition, DApp developers and exchanges are urged to begin integration testing against v10.7 builds now, as the final v11.0 hard fork release will be a minor incremental update. Notably, Plutus Cost Model updates are live on the Preview network and set for enactment this Friday, a critical step for enabling and validating the upgrade's new primitives.

Cardano Node 10.7.1

• Pre-release is available now
• Performance and memory issues fixes will be included in version 10.7.1
• The ecosystem is encouraged to start testing 10.7.1 pre-release and integrating against this node version – now is the time
• Be aware, due to changes in storage shape, a full resync of the network is required for this release
• Third-party integrators (Wallets, Rosetta, etc.) are already working against the 10.7.0 pre-release with more of them expected to use 10.7.1
• Exchanges engagement will begin shortly.

Keeping informed
The best place for technical updates and questions remains the #wg-hard-fork channel in the Intersect Discord, where the working group shares updates and responds directly to the community.

The Cardano Upgrades Knowledge Base continues to provide the most complete view of upgrade readiness, including working group policies, meeting notes, readiness tracking, and supporting context for the hard fork process. 

Contributors: Civics committee, Thomas L, Ian H, Intersect, Intersect Steering Committee, Simo S, Intersect 

Civics Committee Updates 

The weekly Civics committee featured a demonstration of new enhancements to the Constitutional Amendment Process (CAP) tool, including a "diff view" for tracking constitutional changes and a Kanban board for proposal management. The group reviewed the live release of a new governance health dashboard, built as part of the Pentad integration with Dune and utilising work completed under the Governance Health Working Group, and discussed the upcoming registration timeline and educational requirements for the Constitutional Committee (CC) elections. Finally, the meeting moved to a direct call for increased member commitment to ensure the committee's own budget proposal is finalized and submitted effectively.

Constitutional Committee Election 2026 Launch 

Next Friday, Intersect will begin an awareness campaign ahead of the 2026 Constitutional Committee (CC) election process with an introductory X Space.

This session will feature a roundtable with both current and former CC members to discuss what the role actually looks like on a day to day basis. If you are considering running as a candidate, this is the best time to get your questions answered and understand the expectations before the application window opens.

We encourage anyone interested in the CC to join the conversation. Whether you are planning to stand for election or just want to know how the selection process will work, you can hear directly from those who have done the work. You can view all of Intersect's events here on Luma and subscribe to receive a reminder. 

Live governance actions* 

1. Approve Cardano Foundation as New Managing Entity of Project Catalyst

Type: Info Action ℹ️

Expires: 19th Apr 2026 (Epoch 626) 🗓️

Progress Report:

• CC votes: 4 🟢 | 0 🔴 | 1 ⚪️ | 2 ⏳
• DRep votes: 80.79%
• SPO votes: Not counted but the ledger allows a vote (5.62%)

More Info: Proposal | Vote Progress

2. Pebble + Gerolamo - HLabs 2026 Budget

Type: Treasury Withdrawal 💰

Expires: 29th Apr 2026 (Epoch 628) 🗓️

Progress Report:

• CC votes: 1 🟢 | 0 🔴 | 0 ⚪️ | 6 ⏳
• DRep votes: 44.34% / 67%

Thresholds: 5/7 CC members, 67% DRep active voting stake

More Info: Proposal | Vote Progress

3. Cardano Summit 2026 and TOKEN2049 Singapore

Type: Treasury Withdrawal 💰

Expires: 9th May 2026 (Epoch 630) 🗓️

Progress Report:

• CC votes: 0 🟢 | 0 🔴 | 0 ⚪️ | 7 ⏳
• DRep votes: 7.02% / 67%

Thresholds: 5/7 CC members, 67% DRep active voting stake

More Info: Proposal | Vote Progress

Details on all thresholds for governance action can be found here.

*data from 2026-04-17 1100 UTC

 Contributors: Simo S, Intersect, Budget committee, Duncan S, Intersect, Abbie Y, Intersect 

A Cardano Budget Process facilitated by Intersect is now live 

Proposal submission is officially open, giving individuals, teams, committees, and organisations across the ecosystem the opportunity to put forward ideas that could help shape Cardano’s future.

From governance and education, to infrastructure, developer tooling, community initiatives, research, and ecosystem growth, this is the stage where proposals begin to take shape.

The process is designed to support iteration and improvement. Once submitted, proposals become visible on the platform, feedback begins, and proposers can continue refining their work before Hydra voting starts.

There are already a number of tools available to help people get started, including the live application platform, the full process timeline, and a proposal template to guide submissions.

Whether you are preparing to submit, reviewing ideas, or simply following the process, this marks the beginning of an important new phase for the 2026 budget cycle.

Application platform: https://hydra-voting.intersectmbo.org/

View Budget Process Timeline  

New: Intersect Administration Services information pages 

Our Delivery Assurance team has published a new section in our knowledge base with updated information on all the Administration Services Intersect offers. It covers Administration Policies, Smart Contract Infrastructure, How-to Guides, Templates, Updates, and how to navigate the processes established by Intersect’s Administration team.

Please take a look here –
About Intersect's Administration Services | Intersect - Budget Administration Services

This new area has been designed with vendors, third-party assurers, and the community in mind. If you have any feedback, please reach out via the contact form here – Share your Feedback | Intersect - Budget Administration Services.

This week also features the latest Monthly Report for March - spotlighting many of the milestones that have been achieved by vendors in the last month. 

 Contributors: Growth and marketing committee, Terence M, Larisa McF, Intersect 

Ecosystem and Community 

With each week that passes there’s another reminder of the sheer amount of activity taking place across the Cardano ecosystem. Governance, technical development, community participation, budget planning, elections, constitutional work, and new tooling all progressing at the same time, showing an ecosystem that’s always on and keeps moving forward.

One clear example of this has been the opening of the 2026 budget process this week. Proposal submissions are now live, creating an opportunity for projects, committees, organisations, and contributors to put forward their ideas to support Cardano’s next phase of growth. The process itself is designed to be iterative, with room for feedback, revisions, and discussion before decisions are made.

Intersect’s role in this work continues beyond simply facilitating a process. It provides the infrastructure, coordination, templates, communications, and administration that help governance work in practice. From budget tooling and proposal frameworks to milestone reporting and transparency mechanisms, the focus remains on building systems to support better participation and more effective decision-making across the ecosystem.

 

Committee elections are another important part of the right now. Applications will be closed by the time this goes out this week, and we’ve seen strong interest, passion and healthy debate across several committees. This is a sign that members care about their active role in shaping Intersect’s direction and we are thankful for all those putting themselves forward for election. Of course, standing for election is only one side of the process. Voting is equally important and one of the clearest ways members can influence the future of Intersect, ensure different perspectives are represented, and help create committees that are balanced, credible, and reflective of the wider community.

The committees themselves have direct roles in many of Cardano’s most important workstreams. The Budget Committee is helping shape the funding process. The Technical Steering Committee continues to support upgrade readiness and parameter discussions. Civics is focused on governance participation, constitutional education, and the development of tools such as the Constitutional Amendment Process. Product and Open Source committees are helping shape longer-term priorities. These groups are not only operating quietly in the background; they are an important part of how Cardano coordinates itself.

 

Intersect has also had the pleasure of hosting X Spaces this week, (listen back) giving everyone a chance to hear directly from committee members, and better understand the work taking place across the ecosystem. These sessions have already helped create greater visibility around committee responsibilities, priorities, and the people behind the work - and we’ve enjoyed watching the chair’s videos directly from Committee focussed X accounts (links below to all accounts)

Next week we move into dedicated candidate X Spaces, giving a platform for those standing in these elections. These sessions will give you the opportunity to hear directly from applicants, understand their experience and priorities, and ask questions before voting opens. The Spaces will continue at the same time and place each week: Tuesdays at 3:30pm UTC on X, register on the Intersect Luma page to receive reminders and never miss a space!.

Looking ahead, Intersect intends to continue this cadence of weekly hosted Spaces as the ecosystem moves into the Constitutional Committee elections and other topics. With so many important things active across Cardano, from the budget process to protocol upgrades, constitutional questions, and committee work, there’s real value in having a regular space where members can stay informed, ask questions, and feel part of the process.

Perhaps that is one of the strongest themes of the week overall. Cardano is increasingly an ecosystem that participates, actively builds structures, habits, and opportunities that really does make meaningful participation possible.

Contributors: Membership & Community Committee, & Abhik N, Lara B, Ian H, Intersect 

Elections 

With the Intersect Committee elections applications closing today, April 17 2026 at 1200 UTC, a reminder that you can find all the relevant Committee X accounts here:

Budget, Civics, Growth & Marketing, Membership & Community, Open Source, Product, Technical Steering

What’s on next week:

Intersect Committee elections 2026

Subscribe to the Luma calendar

• X Space: Intersect Committee Elections '26: Meet the Candidates #1
  Tuesday, April 21 2026 at 1530 UTC
• Virtual Hub: Meet the Candidates
  Thursday, April 23 2026 at 1400 UTC
  How to join the Virtual Hub guide on X

Constitutional Committee elections 2026

X Space: 2026 CC Elections - #1 The Role of the Constitutional Committee

Friday, April 24 2026 at 1530 UTC

 

Regular schedule

“Inside the van Rossem Upgrade: Weekly Community Q&A” X Space hosted by Intersect Technical Steering Committee
Thursday, April 16 2026 at 1430 UTC | Luma calendar

This week’s Enterprise Member spotlight: zkFold. 

zkFold is a technology company offering a broad range of development and consulting services for blockchain-focused projects.

Its team provides tailored support across multiple technical areas, helping organizations navigate complex project requirements and implementation needs.

Among the services highlighted by zkFold are technical consulting in areas such as cryptography, smart contracts, blockchain architecture, and AI automation.

The company also notes experience supporting grant-related initiatives, including proposal development, white papers, and milestone-based engineering delivery.

Additional areas of expertise listed by zkFold include AI agents and workflows, frontend and dApp development, protocol design, zero-knowledge circuit design, blockchain infrastructure, security audits, and formal verification.

As an Intersect Enterprise Member, zkFold forms part of the growing network of organizations engaging with the Cardano ecosystem and wider Web3 space.

That’s it for this week’s update. Thank you for reading. To learn more about Intersect’s work, explore our Knowledge Base, which provides detailed information on governance structures, committees, and funding.

Join the conversation on Discord, and follow us on Twitter (X) and LinkedIn to engage with fellow members, working groups, and the broader community.

Your voice helps shape the future of Cardano governance.