Author: Marco González

Editor: Randall Roland

Over its history, the development of the EOS Network resembles the launching of a heavy rocket. Barely moving and plenty of smoke under B1. Rapid ascent once the EOS Network Foundation took over.

The history of the EOS Network had three major turning points. Following the initial fundraising, Block.One released a white paper and open-sourced EOSIO.

A lot would transpire over the next few years. Unfortunately, development and innovation lagged. Community voices went unheard. Concern gave rise to the second major turning point, the founding of the EOS Network Foundation and independence.

Independence via the release of Antelope Leap 3.1 corrected the course. For the first time, the community could rely on ongoing open-source development. Instead of criticism, there’s now constructive feedback and widespread contributions. To top it off, the ENF delivered the first EOS EVM, the third major milestone in the network’s history.

The image above overviews technical developments and key events throughout EOS’ history. There were three major releases of the underlying software (EOSIO 1.0 and 2.0 and [Antelope] Leap 3.1). Visit the EOS Network Foundation for official information, including the recently released celebratory article EOS: Five Years of Community, Performance and Resilience. Explore action as it happened on w3briefs.com for various resources covering the EOS community, B1, and the ENF.

The EOS Network Foundation appreciates its community. A relationship that didn’t seem to exist during past leadership development. Consider several new dynamics focusing on community:

Being a member of EOS before the emergence of the ENF was a far cry from today. Disagreements, heated arguments, and complaints still exist- as in most open communities. However, now there are measurable actions that individuals and teams can take. The ENF succeeds in meeting the needs of a diverse, growing community.

Working groups, or WG+, are organized and monitored teams that work directly with the ENF.

The Direct Grant Framework is a multi-level program for project owners to petition the ENF for funding and guidance. The program also concerns itself with research and maintenance of the Antelope protocol. Guidelines and processes are detailed on the program’s GitHub page.

As a testament to the ENF’s character, review the Recognition Grants distributed to 35 loyal projects and businesses. $3.5M was divided equally among each. Recognition Grants were the first big boost for veteran teams. EOS Network Ventures promises to be the next. With $20M already allocated for GameFi development, another $80M is up for grabs.

Even though many blockchains utilize open-source technology, few properly support independent efforts. Crowdfunding is certainly not new, but in terms of a means for decentralized platform development, few options exist.

Pomelo has proven its effectiveness. With the help of other independent community efforts (e.g., EOS Audit) Pomelo enables individuals and teams to network with the community. The more value perceived by the community, the more donations and matching funds become available to a project.

A surprising partnership with the city of Busan was among the first impact networking events. A Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the city and the ENF. The agreement leverages $100M from the Venture Capital Alliance of Busan Blockchain. More directly, DWF Labs allocated $60M for EOS. The investment focuses on market-making while helping fund projects that build on the network.

There are a host of other partnerships and networking ventures helping to grow the New EOS. The above are merely the most directly tied to financial resources. For example, EOS Support developed alongside the foundation. EOS Support helps onboard new users, projects, and businesses. EOS Nation is another key networking partnership that’s well-known among community members, especially through weekly Fireside Chats.

Veteran projects like Greymass, Sentnl, and Zaisan impact ENF working groups. Networking with Multichain, Messari, Binance, the Canada Blockchain Consortium, and the Blockchain Gaming Alliance adds to the foundation’s influence. As does the development of inter-blockchain communication (IBC) and an EOS Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM).

Recognition grants were the first indication that the ENF had no intention of leaving the community behind. While coining the term a “New EOS”, the foundation has gone above and beyond to support growth while nurturing a resilient, loyal community. In honor of five years together, the ENF created EOS Moments NFTs. An anniversary Fireside Chat saw numerous participants open NFT crates together. Read about the anniversary in EOS: Five Years of Community, Performance and Resilience.

This ENF’s roadmap for the network’s future is a living document. The roadmap extends through 2024 with updates and changes occurring as needed. Never dissociated from the community, the foundation grows rapidly and gains influence. Whether it be a developer, operator, or open community meeting, there’s little surprise when top brass joins to give a live briefing and field feedback on the fly.