Cardano’s native cryptocurrency is called Ada.
Cardano is a public blockchain platform launched in September 2017, while Ada is the digital currency used to pay transaction fees and transfer value on its network. The platform was developed by a group of organizations including the Cardano Foundation, Input Output, and EMURGO. Its name honors the Italian mathematician Gerolamo Cardano.
Ada is named after Ada Lovelace, the 19th-century English mathematician often described as an early computer programmer. Its smallest denomination is the Lovelace: one Ada equals 1,000,000 Lovelaces. The currency is commonly written as ADA, while Cardano refers to the broader blockchain ecosystem.
A frequent mix-up is treating “Cardano” and “Ada” as interchangeable. Cardano is the network; Ada is its native cryptocurrency. Cardano uses the Ouroboros proof-of-stake protocol, allowing holders to delegate ADA to staking pools and potentially earn additional ADA. Its development has included eras named Byron, Shelley, Goguen, Basho, and Voltaire.