13th Nov 24

Intros:

Kevin Hammond: TSC Voting Member - Chair of TSC - IOE

Neil Davies: TSC Voting Member - PN Solutions

Johnny Kelly: TSC Voting Member - IOE

Adam Dean: TSC Voting member

Markus Gufler: TSC Voting member - Cardano Foundation

Nicholas Clark: TSC Voting Member - Tweag/Modus

Ben Hart: TSC Voting member - MLabs

Duncan Soutar: Secretary of TSC - Intersect

Matt Davies - Head of Technical Operations - Intersect

Hwang Hongket - Secretary of Core Infrastructure Roadmap - Intersect

Lewis Mayne - Secretary of Hard Fork Working Group - Intersect

Ricky Rand - General Manager - IOE

Duncan Coutts - WellTyped

Christian Taylor: Head of Open Source Office, Intersect Staff

Tex McCutcheon: Open Source Program Manager, Intersect Staff, Open Source Committee Secretary

Agenda:

Attendees: Duncan Soutar Duncan Coutts Hwang Hongket, Ben Hart, Adam Dean, Johnny Kelly, Neil Davies, Kevin Hammond, Matt Davies, Markus Gufler, Christian Taylor, Tex McCrutcheon, Nicholas Clarke, Ricky Rand

1. Temporary chair of meeting in Kevin Hammond’s Absence

2. Election of Vice-Chair - Duncan

   1. 2 nominees - Adam Dean & Ben Hart - voting survey to be sent out and results announced 12:30 Friday

3. Publishing of Roadmap Project proposals on knowledgebase - Hwang

   1. Update on progress

   2. Vote by committee on approval to publish (soft launch) & delegate management to Functional Team

4. Budget creation update - Duncan

   1. Initial presentation to ISC completed on Tuesday (yesterday) and docs shred with ISC: TSC Budget Presentation v2

   2. First session with community to be held on Tuesday (19th Nov)

   3. Review of questionnaire to enable community input to TSC budget & roadmap: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1aGwaVxHyI3vMX3UxQ2PKLxr1rVbprZ1K2735YcIAjH4/edit

   4. Agreement to review and finalize the above a-sync

5. Roadmap Proposal Updates:

   1. Wallets: In relation to GraphQL we will continue to maintain and improve it (e.g. add CIP68 Support) as part of BAU activities but no significant / major development planned.

      1. In relation to cardano-wallet , this will be maintained and supported to ensure it supports the latest ledger/ node updates etc. This can be significant effort at times depending on the changes introduced.

      2. As for future features we do plan on enhancing the wallet functionality but roadmap is not agreed.

   2. DB Sync: “most of the work in DBSync is maintenance, upstream integration and tech debt. However, we may need to integrate things like UTxO-HD, Leios (not sure if this will emerge in 2025), which are far from trivial/usual work” - remove from roadmap and add to maintenance

   3. Decentralized Oracle & : CIR session to be held tomorrow (Thursday) proposals populated here: DRep Presentation: CIR Item Proposal Briefs

6. Future of Core Infrastructure Roadmap Group - Ben

   1. Decision required from TSC as to whether Group should continue in its current form for 2025

7. Hark Fork Update - Matt

   1. Update on decision by Working Group - criteria for HF initiation?

   2. Update on timing

   3. Any actions by TSC?

8. Maintenance - ‘Must have’ Scope

   1. Review Required by TSC of scope

9. TSC Admin - Duncan

   1. Creation of log of actions, minutes & decisions

Meeting Decisions:

• Process for Community Projects: A decision was proposed to develop a clearer, more inclusive process that allows community projects to apply for uncommitted budget allocations, ensuring they have equal opportunity alongside IOG projects.

• Publishing Project List Strategy: The group proposed publishing the project submission process on Gitbook, allowing community input, and only then releasing the current proposed project list. This approach aims to improve knowledge of how the community can add proposals into the development roadmap

• Continuity of Maintenance Contracts: The committee decided to extend the current maintenance contract with IOG (or IOHK) to ensure continuity of mission-critical tasks through January. They acknowledged the practical limitations of finding alternative contractors in the short term.

• Review of Essential Maintenance Tasks: A subcommittee was formed to review and confirm the essential maintenance tasks that are essential to the maintenance of Cardano Network. They will determine which tasks are mission-critical and finalize a list of required tasks.

• Budget Scope and Timeline: The committee decided to consult with finance to clarify the remaining budget available in the dev trust fund and how long it is expected to last, allowing them to prioritize essential maintenance tasks within this scope.

• Technical Steering Committee (TSC) Responsibility Clarification: The TSC confirmed its role primarily as a technical reviewer, focusing on the feasibility and technical validity of projects rather than project prioritization. They will help ensure proposed projects align with the stability and goals of the network as laid out by the product committee and the wider community.

• Role of Intersect's CI Group in Project Intake: The committee proposed that the CI group continue serving as the first point of intake and routing for project proposals, especially to handle potential increases in community submissions.

• Presentation and Outreach on Budget Process: A decision was made to improve outreach and socialization of the budget process, emphasizing steps for community members to submit projects for consideration. They also decided to verify the channels used to communicate this process and add more where needed.

Deadline for Hard Fork Update: A tentative decision was set to establish January as the final deadline for publishing the hard fork update, while ensuring that exchanges are informed well in advance.

Meeting Minutes

Discussion Point	Notes	Actions: Responsible / Note
Building in Public and Transparency	Adam Dean raised concerns about the lack of transparency the project submission process for core cardano, which may result in promoting IOG projects over community projects and emphasized the need for a clear process for community projects to access the uncommitted budget.	- Address the community inclusion process and clarify how community projects can apply for funding. - Matt, Duncan & Hwang
Socializing the CI Process	Matt Davis mentioned that the CI process had been open, but it might not have been adequately communicated to the community. Discord and Gitbook updates were used, but broader outreach is needed.	- Confirm the outreach channels and improve visibility of the CI process. - Matt, Duncan, Hwang
Proposal Submission Process	Participants discussed the need for a clear, transparent process for submitting project proposals. Adam Dean suggested that the process should start with how to get involved, and Duncan Soutar proposed using a Git-based repository for more transparent proposal submissions.	- Establish a structured process for project submissions and communicate it effectively. - Matt, Duncan, Hwang
Project List Publishing Strategy	Jonathan Kelly suggested that the submission process should be advertised before publishing the current proposed project list to avoid perceptions of favoritism.	- Publish the process for project submissions before listing projects to encourage community participation. - Matt, Duncan, Hwang
Project Representation Data	Jonathan Kelly requested data to compare the ratio of IOG-led to community-led projects to assess the transparency of the CI process.	- Gather and publish data on project representation. - Matt
Budget and Maintenance Contract	Discussion on whether certain maintenance tasks need to be contracted out. The technical steering committee emphasized reviewing the necessity of each task, with some tasks (like network monitoring) suggested for third-party evaluation. Kevin was noted as a key individual to help clarify items marked as essential.	- Form a subcommittee to review and clarify maintenance tasks. - Consult finance on budget limitations for maintenance. - Jonny, Adam, Neil
Hard Fork Update	Adam Dean reported that the hard fork timeline was pushed to January, and the focus is now on establishing a clear must-have checklist and timeline for exchanges to update.	- Establish a January deadline for the hard fork and finalize the must-have criteria. - HF Working Group
Maintenance and Budget Prioritization	Participants emphasized the need to ensure continuity with current contractors while evaluating which tasks are mission-critical. Concerns were raised about ensuring community representation and whether funding would come from the dev trust or treasury.	- Confirm budget sources and prioritize funding essential tasks. - Establish clear roles for the Technical Steering Committee in assessing maintenance tasks. - Jonny, Adam, Neil
Intersect's Role in Project Intake - Continuation of CIR Group	The potential for Intersect's CI group to serve as a first point of contact for project proposals was discussed. This would allow for early filtering and routing of proposals to appropriate committees.	- Agreed that CIR group should continue handling project intake and routing. - Ben Hart
Technical Committee's Role	Discussion on clarifying the TSC’s role as a technical filter rather than a decision-maker on who executes projects. Emphasis was placed on maintaining technical standards and ensuring that budget allocations are fair and unbiased.	- Define TSC’s specific responsibilities for project intake, prioritization, and technical evaluation.