Cardano (ADA) achieved a new all-time high of $2.54 in the early hours of trading this morning.

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This marks a 20% gain in the past 24 hours. Yet this figure roughly doubles the further back in time you scale. ADA rose 40% in the past week, overtaking Tether and Binance Coin in market capitalization. Within the past 2 weeks, ADA has risen over 80%. Currently, Cardano has the third-highest market capitalization for a cryptocurrency at just over $80 billion.

Upgrade boost

Cardano’s price started its run up on August 10, when Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson announced he would reveal the release date for the impending Alonzo upgrade on August 13. The Alonzo hard fork will bring the long-awaited smart contract functionality to the Cardano proof-of-stake (PoS) blockchain.

Input Output, the development company behind Cardano, then announced that the upgrade would occur on September 12. Shortly thereafter ADA surpassed the $2 mark.

The much-anticipated smart contract launch will reassure investors, who will now be watching closely to ensure Cardano sticks to its deadline. Some are confident that Cardano’s slow-and-steady approach is best in the long term.

The Cardano difference

Cardano distinguishes itself from its competitors through its academic approach, aiming to address scalability and other issues through research. It utilizes a team of engineers and academics that have published more than 100 scientific papers on the underlying technology. Its team thoroughly peer reviews and stress tests all its work before implementation. This means the final product is likely to be more robust and work smoothly. However, it is also the reason why it has taken so long to introduce smart contract functionality.

Hoskinson has also frequently recalls the company’s motivating developmental goals. For example, in a recent interview with Bloomberg highlighting Cardano’s work in Ethiopia, Hoskinson emphasized his company’s commitment to human rights. “We’re a big believer in quality human rights,” he said.