We are excited to announce that we have successfully upgraded our Cosmos Network node to the latest version, Gaia v24.0.0. This is a critical network upgrade, officially passed via on-chain governance, and it marks an important architectural evolution for the entire Cosmos ecosystem.
In this article, we’ll explore what the Cosmos blockchain is, how the new upgrade impacts developers, validators, and wallets, and why relying on a node provider is more important than ever. If you’re building in the Cosmos ecosystem or integrating with Cosmos (ATOM), this is an update you can’t afford to ignore.
What Is Cosmos?
To understand the significance of this upgrade, it’s important to revisit what Cosmos is. Cosmos is an ecosystem of sovereign, interoperable blockchains powered by the Cosmos SDK, a modular framework for building application-specific blockchains. At the heart of the ecosystem is Cosmos Hub, the original blockchain in the Cosmos Network and the home of the ATOM token.
Cosmos was designed to solve the issues of blockchain scalability, usability, and interoperability through features such as:
- Tendermint BFT (now CometBFT) consensus for fast finality.
- IBC (Inter-Blockchain Communication Protocol) for seamless cross-chain communication.
- A governance layer that allows on-chain decision-making for software upgrades and protocol changes.
Cosmos Hub plays a central role in this architecture, acting as the primary connector for other chains in the network.
The Significance of Gaia v24.0.0
The Gaia v24.0.0 release is not a routine patch – it is a hard fork upgrade that brings important foundational changes. Here are the most impactful elements of this release:
1. Transition Away from Custom Cosmos SDK
One of the most critical aspects of this upgrade is the Cosmos Hub’s gradual migration away from its custom version of the Cosmos SDK. Over time, Gaia had diverged from the upstream SDK to support chain-specific features like Liquid Staking Module (LSM). While necessary at the time, this divergence made maintenance, upgrades, and community compatibility more difficult.
With v24.0.0, Cosmos has taken a key step toward standardizing Gaia’s codebase. The custom LSM functionality has now been migrated into its own module, x/liquid, and the old embedded implementation has been disabled. This allows Gaia to begin realigning with the canonical Cosmos SDK, improving interoperability and long-term maintainability.
This upgrade simplifies development, reduces technical debt, and allows for more seamless adoption of new features from the broader Cosmos ecosystem.
2. Expanded Governance Proposal Capabilities
Before this update, expedited governance proposals could only include messages related to chain upgrades. With v24.0.0, expedited proposals can now contain any message type.
This change enhances the governance flexibility of the Cosmos blockchain, making it easier for the community to act swiftly on critical matters – whether related to upgrades, network parameters, or other strategic decisions.
For projects building on Cosmos Hub, this means faster responsiveness and a more dynamic protocol governance system.
3. Impact on Developers, Wallets, and Infrastructure Providers
This is where the technical depth of the Cosmos update becomes critical for anyone working in the Cosmos ecosystem. Changes in the SDK, APIs, or governance logic can break functionality in wallets, dashboards, or applications relying on outdated node behavior.
If you are:
- Running a wallet that connects to Cosmos nodes,
- Using Cosmos RPC endpoints in your backend services,
- Building cross-chain tools that rely on IBC or Cosmos governance logic,
Then the v24.0.0 update may impact your system’s compatibility. That’s why it’s crucial to run infrastructure that is both current and maintained by experts who follow Cosmos governance and roadmap developments.
Why You Need a NOWNodes?
Keeping up with every Cosmos update can be time-consuming, complex, and error-prone. Each new version may bring lots of upgrades, module changes, or governance shifts that can affect how your application behaves – or whether it works at all.
As a Cosmos node provider, NOWNodes’ mission is to take that burden off your shoulders:
- We track every governance proposal, changelog, and releases.
- We implement updates like v24.0.0 on time and test for full compatibility.
- We ensure API endpoints, IBC connectivity, and keep updated our documentation with all changes.
- We safeguard uptime and synchronization – so you can build without worrying about infrastructure.
In the case of this hard fork, we prepared in advance by reviewing the official migration guide, compiling the new version, and testing it in staging environments before deploying to production.
Conclusion
The Gaia v24.0.0 upgrade is a milestone for the Cosmos blockchain and the broader Cosmos ecosystem. It pushes Gaia toward SDK standardization, increases governance agility, and lays the groundwork for faster innovation across the network.
If you’re building on Cosmos, integrating with Cosmos ATOM, or relying on IBC-enabled communication, this update affects you.
Rather than keeping track of governance votes, SDK patches, and release timelines, partner with a node provider that ensures you always run on the latest, most secure version — with no downtime and full support.
Ready to Build in Cosmos Without Managing Infrastructure?
Whether you’re developing a wallet, launching a dApp, or integrating Cosmos staking, we provide:
- Full access to high-performance Cosmos RPC endpoints,
- Dedicated 24/7 public support,
- Monitoring, auto-updates, and rapid support for every Cosmos release.
Focus on building. We’ll handle the Cosmos updates.
