Charles Hoskinson has escalated a public dispute with Iagon’s leadership, accusing the Cardano project of crossing personal and professional “red lines” by targeting Midnight community members and ambassadors amid an ongoing funding battle.
In a video published April 27, 2026, the Cardano founder framed the conflict as more than a routine governance spat. While he said criticism of him or Input Output is legitimate, Hoskinson alleged that Iagon’s leadership had moved beyond debate into harassment of volunteers and community participants tied to Midnight, the privacy-focused project in the Cardano ecosystem.
“I have red lines. There’s not many of them, but if you cross them, I will always behave the same way,” Hoskinson said, adding that accusations of criminal conduct from a prominent actor would prompt a full response “up to and including litigation.” He tied that warning to an earlier ADA voucher controversy, saying Input Output was previously accused of criminal behavior but later “exonerated with an audit,” a period he described as “a very dark time in the history of Cardano.”
Hoskinson’s second red line is personal attacks on people involved with projects that Input Output builds or supports. “Do not attack our ambassadors. Not once, not ever,” he said, denouncing attempts to draw Midnight volunteers into public shaming on Twitter and to portray them as “bought and sold.”
The dispute centers on Iagon’s opposition to funding proposals tied to Input Output and its conduct around Midnight. Hoskinson said Iagon’s CEO voted to defund Input Output and then pressured Midnight ambassadors, discouraging their participation. He also criticized Iagon’s CTO for supporting defunding while publicly labeling Input Output “evil” because of Hoskinson.
Hoskinson emphasized that voting against funding is an acceptable part of Cardano’s governance — other organizations, including the Cardano Foundation and Emurgo, have abstained or voted against proposals in the past. The problem, he said, is when those disagreements become personal attacks on volunteers and community members.
He also suggested Iagon may be distancing itself from Cardano, pointing to prior “multi-chain” messaging and the intensity of the current conflict. Though he said he harbored no ill will toward Iagon token holders, Hoskinson said he had lost confidence in the project’s current leadership: “I do not have any faith in the leadership, ethics or integrity of the Iagon principles at the moment based upon their statements and conduct.”
As a response, Hoskinson announced Input Output would back more decentralized infrastructure options for Cardano, naming Filecoin and Walrus as partners he intends to work with and expressing a desire for Blockfrost to add capabilities as well. He framed the broader funding picture as more efficient than last year: the total fiat value of the current coalition’s proposals, including Input Output and its vendors, is now below $50 million versus $97.5 million for Input Output’s proposals last year — a reduction he attributed partly to lower ADA prices forcing cuts.
Despite the confrontation, Hoskinson said he remained optimistic about Cardano’s trajectory, citing developments like Bitcoin DeFi, Midnight, fresh venture capital interest, dedicated marketing efforts, open-source infrastructure planning, and ecosystem KPIs from the Intersect KPI committee. He concluded the video by saying the Iagon matter was closed from his side and that further engagement would be met with blocks rather than debate.
At press time, ADA traded at $0.2473.
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