In a recent interview with Bullish CEO Tom Farley, creator Gavin Wood said that his current focus is primarily on developing the next iteration of the Polkadot protocol, known as JAM Chain.
Polkadot has historically struggled to build an active user base for decentralized applications (dApps), often falling behind platforms like , and . The upcoming JAM upgrade looks to reverse this by adding new uses for the DOT token and expanding what decentralized networks can do.
Polkadot’s adoption challenges were partly due to its complex ecosystem, which made it difficult for developers to get started. Developers must understand its layer-0 architecture, work with parachains, and deal with the costs of securing parachain slots, which has slowed the network’s growth.
Unlike Ethereum, where smart contracts can be deployed directly, Polkadot’s relay chain does not natively support smart contracts, forcing developers to use parachains instead. This has limited both the user base and the utility of the DOT token.
That said, the JAM upgrade will streamline Polkadot’s development process by allowing developers to deploy smart contracts directly on Polkadot’s layer 0, eliminating the need for parachains. This change could attract more users and provide a direct use case for the DOT token beyond staking and governance.
Wood suggested that JAM could host more than just blockchains, offering a general-purpose environment that could be classified as Layer 1, with services running on JAM considered Layer 1.5. In this context, blockchains secured by JAM could be considered Layer 2.
JAM, which is built on the Polkadot Virtual Machine (PVM) RISC-V, also enables the creation of decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) and wallets without relying on centralized intermediaries. It allows smart contracts to be deployed directly on Polkadot’s core layer, similar to Ethereum.
DOT tokens will also gain new utility as buckets for scaling data, code, and state capacity across services, providing economic incentives for developers and users alike. Additionally, JAM sets a target throughput of 850 MB/s, far exceeding the capabilities of Ethereum 2.0 and Solana.
The Polkadot creator mentioned that the grey paper for JAM Chain is still in development, currently at version 0.3.4, with the goal of reaching version 1.0 by next summer. However, he cautioned that software and protocol development are inherently uncertain, so this timeline is more of a goal than a fixed deadline.
As this upgrade rolls out, it is expected to introduce permissionless code execution, removing the need for governance approval or parachain leasing. With these changes, Polkadot should facilitate the development of self-sovereign DAOs and wallets, opening up new possibilities for decentralized finance, governance, and identity management.
