Blockstack and Algorand are adopting Clarity, a programming language built for smart contracts. The collaboration pairs the decentralized computing network with the proof-of-stake blockchain protocol
Blockstack and Algorand are adopting Clarity, a programming language built for smart contracts. The collaboration pairs the decentralized computing network with the proof-of-stake blockchain protocol to introduce what Blockstack's co-founder and CEO Muneeb Ali calls a necessary shift.
Ali argues that the term "smart contract" itself has become a limitation. "They should not even be called smart contracts because it's a rather limiting name," he said in an interview with Coin Telegraph. "These are verifiable programs that couldn't exist in the cloud computing era."
The move addresses what Ali sees as a critical gap. Developers building on blockchain need alternatives to existing approaches. "Our industry needs a predictable, secure, open-source alternative to current approaches like Solidity," he said. As the value locked in smart contracts grows toward the trillions, he added, the programming language itself becomes crucial infrastructure.
Clarity operates as a "decidable" language. A developer can determine exactly how code will execute and what the gas fee will be before running it, with mathematical certainty. This predictability removes a major friction point for large-scale adoption. Current solutions force developers to iterate without knowing costs or behavior in advance.
Ali frames verifiable code as a shift in what developers can accomplish. "The ability to write verifiable code is like a superpower for developers. This can reshape how software is distributed and verified on the internet, how developers get paid for contributing to code, how access control for internet services is implemented, and so on," he said. Smart contracts demand a different approach than typical software. "They are very different from typical computer programs and websites," Ali explained. "They need to be verifiable programs for high-stake operations. General-purpose languages can be dangerous here."
The partnership brings in Silvio Micali, founder of Algorand, who sees broader implications. "The emergence of a next-generation programming language such as Clarity has the potential to unlock blockchain-based solutions for large-scale enterprises and governments, which demand a higher level of trust and security," Micali said.
