Bitrabo Editorial
Input Output Global (IOG), the organization behind the Cardano blockchain, has halted progress on its Atala Prism project, which aimed to revolutionize educational and identity management in Ethiopia. This information was shared on the Midnight Discord and confirmed by several internal sources, although no official announcement has been made yet.
Atala Prism was designed to use the Cardano blockchain for decentralized identity management. Its goal was to ensure secure creation, ownership, and administration of digital identities through Decentralized Identifiers (DIDs) and Verifiable Credentials (VC). In October 2021, it attracted significant media focus when IOG partnered with the Ethiopian government to create a blockchain-based identification system for students and teachers.
This initiative sought to digitally authenticate academic records, oversee school performance from a distance, and improve both education and job opportunities nationwide. The goal was to develop a secure record of educational achievements for five million students, 3,500 schools, and 750,000 teachers, helping to identify areas needing improvement and optimizing the distribution of educational resources.
IOG Discontinues Atala Prism Initiative
However, recent updates indicate a significant change in direction for the project. A Discord user named johnny5i noted that the project’s termination was brought up in an online meeting. They stated, “IOG has just dismantled Hyperledger Identus. The Identus DID program is essentially finished.”
Consequently, many members of the Atala team, including the entirety of the product team, have lost their jobs. “They have laid off 25 people, including those in platform engineering and outreach,” shared johnny5i.
Though the Atala Prism project has been discontinued, IOG confirmed that a small group will continue with Input Output Engineering (IOE) to support and develop the Hyperledger Identus Project. Esteban, a previous IOG engineer, mentioned on Discord, “Sadly, most of the Atala team, including all the Product team—myself and Fay included—have been let go. Nevertheless, IOG remains committed to advancing the Hyperledger Identus Project.”
He further expressed, “Regarding any further developments of Atala products and commercial goals, it’s fair to assume they will not move forward. […] I want to stress that any ex-IOG employee can choose whether they want to stay with Identus.”
Matt K, formerly the CTO of Atala within IOG, addressed his team on Discord, emphasizing the impact of this shift: “It’s with a heavy heart that I bid farewell to many talented and dedicated colleagues […] I’m incredibly proud of the self-sovereign identity solution we developed, despite the challenges.”
He continued, “To the few remaining team members responsible for maintaining Identus at IO, I wish you the best with this transition. I trust your capabilities will help drive Identus forward.”
The closure of Atala Prism prompts uncertainties regarding the future of Cardano-based identity solutions in Ethiopia. Esteban noted, “As of now, there are no updates on the future of the PRISM Sandbox; I expect updates will come eventually.”
[UPDATE: 11:11 am GMT+2] Charles Hoskinson responded via X: “Just a reminder that Prism transitioned to Hyperledger Identus about 10 months ago. It’s an open-source framework for identity applications. IO Engineering retains the core team along with community support, and products like Midnight, RealFi, and Lace will utilize this framework for their identity requirements. This aligns with common practices in the open core space and the essence of SSI. Identity should enhance other products, not be commercialized itself.”
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