CIP-1694, an official “Cardano Improvement Proposal,” outlines the new community governance structure and establishes three user-led governance bodies: the Constitutional Committee, Delegate Representatives (dReps), and Stake Pool Operators (SPOs). Going forward, Cardano’s three founding entities—the Cardano Foundation, Input Output Global (IOHK), and Emurgo—will no longer hold the keys to trigger chain upgrades, or “hard forks.” Instead, that responsibility will be delegated to the new governance groups.
