Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson has pushed back against criticism from investors disappointed with ADA's market performance, saying he never promised the cryptocurrency would increase in value or that Cardano would eventually overtake Bitcoin.

His remarks came during a YouTube Ask Me Anything (AMA) session and arrive as ADA trades at approximately $0.17, significantly below its previous market peaks, according to a Decrypt report cited by Wu Blockchain on X (https://x.com/WuBlockchain/status/2121468103829946539). The AMA format is built around questions submitted directly by community members.

Hoskinson addressed complaints from members of the Cardano community who have questioned the project's progress and the performance of its native cryptocurrency. Responding to the criticism, he said some investors appeared to expect him to take responsibility for pushing ADA's price higher.

He rejected that expectation, emphasizing that he had never made guarantees about ADA's future market value, nor promised that Cardano would surpass Bitcoin. His comments draw a distinction between the project's development commitments and the expectations that surround cryptocurrency investment returns — a boundary that often blurs in an industry where founders' public statements are closely watched alongside the market performance of their projects' tokens.

Hoskinson Says Cardano Has Completed Its Original Roadmap

Beyond ADA's price performance, Hoskinson also discussed Cardano's development progress and its current governance structure. He said the blockchain network had completed its original roadmap and that everything he had committed to building was now in place.

According to Hoskinson, Cardano has reached a stage where its governance operates independently, without requiring his continued involvement. The network no longer depends on him to direct its operations, reflecting the transition toward a self-governing ecosystem. In practical terms, that means decisions about the network's future are expected to emerge from its own governance processes rather than from the founder — a structure that separates protocol stewardship from any single individual's public profile.

His comments place the emphasis on the completion of Cardano's original development commitments rather than on the market performance of its native token. They also highlight a separation between the responsibilities of a project's founder and the expectations investors may hold regarding the value of its cryptocurrency.

ADA Remains More Than 94% Below Its 2021 Peak

Hoskinson's remarks come against a difficult price backdrop for Cardano investors. At the time of the Decrypt report, ADA was trading at approximately $0.17, representing a decline of more than 94% from its all-time high in 2021. The cryptocurrency was also approximately 86% below its 2024 peak, underscoring the scale of its fall from previous market highs.

Those figures provide context for the investor criticism Hoskinson addressed during the AMA session. Despite the substantial price declines, he maintained that he had never guaranteed appreciation in ADA's market value. His position was that his commitments concerned building Cardano and delivering its original roadmap, not ensuring that the token would outperform Bitcoin or generate particular investment returns.

The discussion therefore brings two separate issues into focus: Cardano's reported completion of its original roadmap, and ADA's performance in cryptocurrency markets. While Hoskinson said the network now governs itself and no longer relies on him, ADA traded at approximately $0.17 at the time of the report — more than 94% below its 2021 all-time high and approximately 86% below its 2024 peak.

Source: Hokanews, citing a Decrypt report shared by Wu Blockchain on X.