Cartesi Ecosystem Updates - January 2026

Newsletter/Jan 30, 2026/Marketing Unit

January has seen plenty of penguins committing to new paths. Cartesi’s penguin, however, has been walking the same one for years. Linux has long been the penguin guiding developer convenience, while the Cartesi Machine and the Optimistic Rollups framework enabled complex computation and high throughput well before it was fashionable.

With the recent move to a permissionless fraud-proof system, this long-standing direction is now reinforced. The SDK continues to mature as we step into a new year of radical focus and Linux-powered builds.

From technical breakthroughs in our Rollups SDK to the open-sourcing of hardware-verifying stacks, January set a high bar for the months to come. Let’s dive into the highlights.

Tech

Cartesi’s Machine Emulator received a merge to support RISC-Zero prover and verifier flows, enabling integration with zero-knowledge proof tooling. In layman’s terms, a new "translator" that lets Cartesi speak the same language as RISC-Zero's zero-knowledge proof tools. This foundation lays groundwork for future verifiable execution workflows and enhances flexibility in how machine states can be demonstrated and provably verified off-chain. Check the merged PR here.

January also brought enhancements to the PRT Fraud Proof System: smarter refunds and cleaner contracts. There were two key improvements to how Cartesi handles disputes. First, the bond refund system was refined so that the new logic ensures that when someone puts up money to participate in a dispute and then exits, getting that money back is now more reliable and predictable. Think of it like a security deposit that is easier to reclaim.

Second, the Tournament contract was simplified by combining multiple contracts into one unified one that handles both types of tournament participants (root and leaf validators) under the same clear rules. This makes the code easier to maintain and safer to audit before major updates.

On a different vertical, Cartesi CLI v2.0.0-alpha.26 is live, bringing a host of improvements. This alpha release is all about speed, simplicity, and smoother workflows: startup times are faster, external dependencies have been reduced for easier setup, and PRT, the permissionless fraud proof system, is now enabled by default for new applications. For those exploring Rollups Node v2, this release provides a sneak peek of upcoming workflow enhancements, and the explorer has been updated to support the new contract versions.

Another key change is the introduction of an alternative Bun-based distribution, which removes the need for a global Node.js install and makes the CLI easier to run across different environments. While account abstraction support has been temporarily paused as core abstractions stabilize, the overall focus of this release is to streamline the path from idea to deployment, giving developers a smoother, more efficient experience. This release is intended for core developers and early testers. Prebuilt binaries are available for testing (macOS support is still pending), and the GitHub release can be found here.

This update continues Cartesi’s momentum in refining the Rollups SDK, helping developers push the boundaries of what’s possible on this appchains framework and offering a playground for experimentation and innovation.

Our tech updates are also logged monthly in L2BEAT’s recap. Here’s where you can keep tabs on what’s new in our mission to make Cartesi a Stage 2 powerhouse, or catch up on the previous editions.

Developer Advocacy

If anyone’s 2026 resolution involves mastering a new stack, we’ve got you covered. You might have noticed our campaign during the holidays with the dev quests, shipped by our developer advocates. Inspired by CryptoZombies, our interactive Playground dApp is the perfect starting point for new builders to master the Cartesi framework, taking you from zero to hero through three engaging levels (inputs and outputs, exploring state transitions, and adding assets). Dive in here.

Vibecoding is where it’s at these days. So how about building a simple Cartesi app with Cursor? Check out how easy it is to prompt your way to a functional dApp with our contributor Shaheen’s tutorial.

Content was also center stage this month. Our DevAd Lead, João Garcia, published an article exploring the synergies between execution environments and data availability, what these layers unlock, and key considerations when building high-throughput dApps. Shoutout to the DevAdvocacy unit and the Avail team for their contributions to the piece as well. The feedback has been great across the board, so make sure you give it a read!

The BEE conceptualized by Cartesi co-founder Felipe Argento still hits after one year.

What makes the Cartesi Machine so special and a "Best Execution Environment"? It’s simple. Cartesi is not just building another VM. We are bringing a full Linux OS to the blockchain. By leveraging the deterministic RV64GC RISC-V ISA, developers can use Python, Rust, and C++ with the security of decades of software maturity, without the “blockchain-only” limitations. If you want to read more about the Cartesi Machine, just stroll through our documentation (said to be one of the best by connoisseurs).

Cartesi Foundation

Transparency is one of the core values of Cartesi. The 2025 Annual Review is now public, detailing everything from treasury diversification and wallet addresses to core unit funding. Check it out here for updated figures, including allocation percentages for each vertical, as the project continues its mission to build a sustainable future for decentralized computing.

To learn more about how the Cartesi Foundation, as a mission-bound organization, has been stewarding and supporting the project since its creation in this form in 2023, take a look here for an overview of its attributions.

Ecosystem

Our creative bug bounty app, PRT Honeypot v2, is thriving. The new bond mechanism is actively strengthening the PRT fraud-proof system, and there are currently 50,000 $CTSI up for grabs for anyone who can crack the code, with the pot expected to grow this year. It’s the ultimate test of our tech's resilience.

For new readers who might be unfamiliar, the Honeypot (a common security mechanism in traditional software) is both a fun but challenging test of Cartesi’s technology and our first app categorized as Stage 2, which makes Cartesi one of only a few projects to have achieved this, as seen on L2BEAT.

Participants try to crack the system, aiming to withdraw the pot to their own wallets, effectively testing the PRT fraud-proof system in a real scenario. The mechanism is designed so that only the depositor, the Cartesi Foundation, can actually withdraw. It’s a hands-on way to test Cartesi’s security, transparency, and resilience in decentralized applications, making it a community-driven, incentivized audit. For a more visual explanation, check out this animation here.

On another front, it’s great to see builders in the space leveraging Cartesi’s verifiability and trust-minimized properties. Big news has come this month from the LocaleNetwork devs, who have officially open-sourced L{CORE}, a self-hosted attestation stack.

By using Cartesi as a fraud-provable computation layer, they’re running a full Linux runtime with SQLite inside our RISC-V VM. This allows deterministic verification of sensor data (like temperature, traffic, or energy readings) before it even hits the chain, ensuring that the data is authentic and tamper-proof. Each device signs its data using decentralized identifiers (DIDs) and JSON Web Signatures, and the attestation is verified in a Trusted Execution Environment. Settlement then happens on Arbitrum’s L2/L3 chains, allowing real-world IoT data to be safely and trustlessly bridged on-chain.

This makes L{CORE} a complete infrastructure for cities, DePIN projects, renewable energy, and supply chains, effectively solving the long-standing IoT trust problem while giving developers a hands-on, fraud-proof way to verify and settle device data. We’re excited to see Cartesi being used in the wild to solve IoT trust requirements by developers who truly seize its value.

Throughout 2025, Cartesi continued its educational efforts in Brazil’s academic community, led by UFF professor Antonio Rocha, with impact rippling far beyond the classroom.

Thanks to partnerships with the Blockchain Observatory (RNP) as part of the ILIADA project, UFBA, and UFF, Cartesi trained over 100 students in Rollups architecture and Web3 development under Prof. Rocha.

Now wrapped up, the program yielded strong results by the end of the year: 18 teams completed capstone projects, demonstrating genuine mastery rather than passive participation, and 7 teams delivered solutions to the Cartesi "time to deploy" challenge introduced last month. Plus, a single lecture by Prof. Rocha on Web3, Blockchain, and Cartesi Rollups, given at the invitation of YDUQS for their Science and Technology Week audience, reached 436 students, planting seeds that may grow into future contributors.

Finally, one course participant co-authored a peer-reviewed scientific paper published in a top-tier journal using Cartesi as a layer-2 solution for auction-based resource allocation. This achievement bridges academia and practical blockchain application, demonstrating once again Cartesi’s technical stack real-world applicability.

Looking ahead to 2026, a new study group was formed by Professor Rocha to hold weekly meetings to advance our studies of Cartesi technology, exchange experiences, and develop new Cartesi prototype solutions. We are excited to keep seeding blockchain education among students in Brazil

Community

Penguins and clippers have been the highlights of "Crypto Twitter" and the community at large. Our Cartesians weren’t left behind. We’ve seen penguins and clips in action too. Check out this throwback of our Cartesi co-founder, Erick de Moura, explaining the project’s mission, brought to life with playful edits and still packing a punch, courtesy of community supporters.

And guess what? The penguin wasn’t running to the mountains alone. It took the Linux path and always had someone by its side, because that’s what you get in open source projects.

More penguins have been cooked up with love by both community members and ambassadors. But do you want to hear the real penguin lore? Linux mascot penguin origins? In the mid-1990s, Linus Torvalds wanted a mascot for Linux. He saw a penguin at an Australian zoo and liked the idea (some say it bit him). An artist named Larry Ewing designed the iconic Tux logo in 1996 (short for "tuxedo"). It stuck, and Tux has been Linux's instantly recognizable mascot ever since.

And last but not least, the holidays may be over, but the presents are still arriving. Shoutout to our community winners sharing their Cartesi merch packs across the globe! We love seeing those colourful boxes and swag on the X feed. Keep them coming!

Media

One of the month’s highlights was having our co-founder, Felipe Argento, on Crypto Coin Show, marking Cartesi’s third appearance on the podcast in the past four years. It was great to catch up with a media outlet that’s now part of Cartesi’s journey and to walk them through the latest updates. ICYMI, you can watch it below:

For the dev audience, dev.to community writers have shipped a piece about optimistic rollups and zk rollups, examining Ethereum’s scalability race. The article is outlining the tradeoffs between speed, cost, security, and developer usability. While ZK-Rollups offer faster finality, their limited throughput, complexity and high costs limit broader adoption, leaving Optimistic Rollups dominant despite slower withdrawals. In this context, the spotlight is on Cartesi’s Dave fraud-proof system as a key advancement, reinforcing Optimistic Rollups with permissionless, cost-efficient dispute resolution that improves security without sacrificing flexibility or developer experience. Give it a read here.

The co-authored piece on the modular stack for 2026, exploring the interplay between execution environments and data availability by Cartesi and Avail, also made headlines in U.Today:

The Portuguese-speaking audience was again in for a treat, as usual. This time, core contributor Carlo Fragni was recently featured in Exame and CriptoMagazine, discussing how Brazil is shaping the future of money. Cartesi is positioned as the go-to infrastructure for institutional-grade DeFi and RWAs, allowing traditional players to use familiar Web2 tools in a Web3 world. Make sure you do give the articles a read for the whole scoop.

In addition, Tech Cripto and Bitcoin Block have praised Cartesi’s transparency in openly sharing their treasury and financial statements in two other articles.

That’s a Wrap

These ecosystem updates also land in Cartesians’ inboxes every month, and each edition comes with a prize. Newsletter subscribers might snag a fresh branded hoodie. Subscribe if you haven’t already and keep an eye out for every drop.

January flew by, but Cartesi fired on all cylinders, pushing code, sharing ecosystem news, dropping transparency reports, making headlines in the crypto media, and reinforcing that the "Best Execution Environment" isn’t just a slogan. It’s a Linux-powered reality.

Want to start building or just join the community and contribute to the Cartesi ecosystem? Hop on Discord or Telegram and help make 2026 truly the year of the penguin with real Linux dApps.