EOS is a public blockchain that went live with its mainnet in June of 2018. Before its launch, it was one of the most highly anticipated blockchain projects of all time, as the team behind it raised a record-breaking $4 billion in its initial coin offering (ICO). Before the transition to its mainnet, EOS tokens existed as ERC-20 tokens on the Ethereum network.
Key EOS features:
- Launched in 2018 after a record-breaking $4 billion ICO
- Allows users to run DApps, smart contracts and create custom tokens
- The EOS blockchain can handle thousands of transactions per second
The EOSIO protocol, which is the backbone of the EOS blockchain, was developed by Block.one. One of the chief architects of EOS is Dan Larimer, a software developer and entrepreneur who also had a pivotal role in the development of the BitShares and Steem blockchains.
In essence, EOS is a blockchain platform that allows users to deploy smart contracts, run decentralized applications (DApps) and issue custom tokens. While these features can be found on a number of other blockchains, EOS aims to distinguish itself from the competition through improved scalability and faster transaction speeds. The EOS network can handle over 3,000 transactions per second.
EOS utilizes a delegated proof-of-stake (DPoS) model to achieve consensus about the state of its ledger. The consensus process is executed by block producers (BPs), and each EOS holder can decide which block producers they want to vote for with their EOS tokens. At any given time, the 21 block producers with the most votes are actively participating in the consensus process. A unique feature of the EOS blockchain is that users don’t have to pay any fees when sending transactions.
The main competitors of EOS are other blockchain platforms that support the deployment of smart contracts and decentralized applications – examples include Ethereum and TRON. TRON is perhaps the best comparison, as its consensus model also utilizes delegated proof-of-stake.
DApps deployed on the EOS network cover a wide range of use cases, including gaming, gambling, decentralized exchanges, freelancing platforms, decentralized information sources (Everipedia), and more.
To learn more about EOS, check out our in-depth article on the topic.