explain-cip

Explain CIP

Help developers understand Cardano Improvement Proposals — what they standardize, how they affect development, and how to implement them.

When to use

• A developer asks about a specific CIP by number ("What is CIP-30?")
• A developer asks which standard covers a topic ("How do I do NFT metadata?")
• A developer wants to understand the motivation behind a standard
• Questions about CIP status, adoption, or SDK support
• Comparing CIPs that address similar concerns (e.g., CIP-25 vs CIP-68 for metadata)

When NOT to use

• The developer wants to implement wallet connectivity — use connect-wallet (which covers CIP-30 implementation)
• The developer needs to write a validator or build a transaction — redirect to the relevant skill
• The developer asks about eUTxO concepts — use explain-eutxo
• The question is about Cardano governance participation — use the governance skill

Key Principles

1. CIPs are standards, not implementations

A CIP defines a specification or convention. It does not provide a library or runtime. SDKs and tools choose to implement CIPs. When explaining a CIP, distinguish between what the standard defines and how specific tools implement it.

2. Always check CIP status

CIPs go through lifecycle stages: Draft, Proposed, Active, Inactive. A Draft CIP may change significantly. An Active CIP is stable and widely adopted. Always note the status when explaining a CIP, because developers should not build on unstable drafts without understanding the risk.

3. Focus on developer impact

Developers care about: What does this CIP let me do? What do I need to implement? Which SDKs support it? What are the constraints? Lead with practical impact, not governance process.

4. CIPs build on each other

Many CIPs reference or extend others. CIP-68 builds on CIP-25 concepts. CIP-95 extends CIP-30. When explaining a CIP, note its dependencies and related CIPs so the developer understands the full picture.

Workflow

Step 1: Identify the CIP

Determine the CIP number from the developer's question. If they describe a feature without naming a CIP, map it:

• "NFT metadata" -> CIP-25, CIP-68
• "Wallet connection" -> CIP-30
• "Governance wallet" -> CIP-95
• "Token metadata on-chain" -> CIP-68
• "Validator blueprint" -> CIP-57
• "Programmable tokens" -> CIP-113
• "On-chain governance" -> CIP-1694

Step 2: Search Bundled Documentation

Search the bundled documentation for relevant content:

• ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/../../docs/sources/cips/ - CIP specifications and proposals

Use Grep and Glob to find relevant files. CIP content may appear in reference docs, registry entries, or skill files.

Step 3: Explain the CIP

Structure your explanation with these components:

Summary: One-paragraph description of what the CIP standardizes.

Motivation: Why was this CIP created? What problem does it solve? What existed before?

Developer impact: What does this mean for a developer building on Cardano?

• What can they build with it?
• What do they need to implement?
• What constraints does it impose?

Implementation status: Is this CIP Active, Draft, or Proposed? Which SDKs support it? Are there known limitations or upcoming changes?

SDK support: Which Cardano SDKs and tools implement this CIP, and how?

Step 4: Provide practical guidance

Give the developer actionable next steps:

• Point to the relevant skill if they need to implement something
• Note which SDK methods or tools to use
• Highlight common pitfalls or misunderstandings

Key CIPs for Developers

CIP-25: NFT Metadata Standard

Status: Active

Summary: Defines a standard for attaching metadata to NFTs (and fungible tokens) using transaction metadata (label 721). Metadata is included in the minting transaction and indexed by off-chain services.

Developer impact:

• Metadata is stored in the transaction, not on the UTxO itself
• Metadata is only in the minting transaction — it cannot be updated after minting
• Off-chain indexers (Blockfrost, Koios, etc.) parse and serve CIP-25 metadata
• Simple to implement: add a metadata entry to the minting transaction

Limitations:

• Immutable after minting (no metadata updates)
• Stored off-chain relative to the UTxO (only in the transaction)
• Led to the creation of CIP-68 to address mutability and on-chain storage

Structure:

{
  "721": {
    "<policy_id>": {
      "<asset_name>": {
        "name": "Token Name",
        "image": "ipfs://<hash>",
        "description": "Token description",
        "mediaType": "image/png",
        "<additional_properties>": "..."
      }
    }
  }
}

CIP-30: Cardano dApp-Wallet Web Bridge

Status: Active

Summary: Defines a JavaScript API that wallets inject into web pages, enabling dApps to request wallet information, build transactions, and request signing. This is the primary standard for dApp-wallet interaction in browsers.

Developer impact:

• window.cardano.<walletName> exposes the wallet API
• enable() returns an API object with methods for address, UTxO, and signing operations
• All data is CBOR-encoded — SDKs handle serialization
• Wallets: Begin, Eternl, Flint, GeroWallet, Lace, Nami, NuFi, RayWallet, Yoroi all implement CIP-30

Key API methods:

• getNetworkId() — returns 0 (testnet) or 1 (mainnet)
• getUtxos() — returns available UTxOs for transaction building
• getBalance() — returns wallet balance
• getUsedAddresses() / getUnusedAddresses() — address management
• signTx(tx, partialSign) — request transaction signing
• signData(addr, payload) — sign arbitrary data (CIP-8)
• submitTx(tx) — submit a signed transaction

Common pitfalls:

• Always check window.cardano exists before accessing wallet properties
• Handle the case where the user rejects the enable() prompt
• CBOR encoding/decoding — use an SDK (Mesh, Evolution SDK) rather than raw CIP-30

CIP-57: Plutus Contract Blueprint (CIP-0057)

Status: Active

Summary: Defines a JSON schema (blueprint) for Plutus validators, describing their parameters, datum, and redeemer types. Aiken generates CIP-57 blueprints automatically. SDKs use blueprints to create type-safe interfaces for validator interaction.

Developer impact:

• Aiken produces plutus.json after compilation — this is the CIP-57 blueprint
• SDKs (Mesh, Evolution SDK) can read the blueprint to generate typed transaction builders
• Blueprints enable code generation and type safety across the on-chain/off-chain boundary
• Includes validator hashes, parameter schemas, and datum/redeemer definitions

Structure highlights:

• validators[] — list of validators with their hashes and compiled code
• definitions — shared type definitions (datum, redeemer schemas)
• Each validator entry includes datum.schema, redeemer.schema, and compiledCode

CIP-68: Datum Metadata Standard

Status: Active

Summary: Defines a pattern for storing token metadata as a datum on a reference UTxO, making metadata on-chain, updatable, and queryable via reference inputs. Replaces CIP-25 for use cases requiring mutable or on-chain metadata.

Developer impact:

• Each token has a paired reference NFT holding metadata in its datum
• Token labels: (222) for NFTs, (333) for FTs, (444) for RFTs
• The reference NFT sits at a script address; the user token is in the user's wallet
• Metadata can be updated by consuming and recreating the reference UTxO
• Requires a more complex minting policy than CIP-25

Architecture:

• User token: <policy_id>.<label><name> — held by the owner, represents ownership
• Reference token: <policy_id>.<ref_label><name> — held at a script address, carries metadata in its datum
• The minting policy enforces that both tokens are minted together

When to use CIP-68 vs CIP-25:

Requirement	CIP-25	CIP-68
Simple, immutable NFT	Good fit	Overkill
Updatable metadata	Not possible	Designed for this
On-chain metadata access	Not available	Via reference input
Implementation complexity	Low	Medium
Transaction cost	Lower (metadata only)	Higher (reference UTxO + datum)

CIP-95: Governance Wallet Extensions

Status: Active (Conway era)

Summary: Extends CIP-30 with governance-specific wallet methods for the Conway governance era (Voltaire). Enables dApps to interact with DRep registration, voting, and governance actions.

Developer impact:

• Adds cip95 methods accessible after enable({ extensions: [{ cip: 95 }] })
• getPubDRepKey() — get the wallet's DRep public key
• getRegisteredPubStakeKeys() — get registered stake keys
• getUnregisteredPubStakeKeys() — get unregistered stake keys
• Required for governance dApps (GovTool, DRep platforms)

Prerequisite: CIP-30 wallet connection must be established first.

CIP-113: Programmable Token Standard

Status: Proposed

Summary: Defines a standard for tokens with programmable transfer logic — tokens that enforce rules on every transfer, not just minting. This is Cardano's approach to features like ERC-20 transfer hooks or restricted tokens.

Developer impact:

• Enables "smart tokens" with enforced transfer rules
• Uses spending validators at script addresses to control token movement
• Relevant for regulated assets, royalty enforcement, and access-controlled tokens
• Check current status — this CIP may still be evolving

Note: Since this CIP is in Proposed status, the specification may change. Build with awareness that details could shift before it reaches Active status.

CIP-1694: Conway Era Governance (Voltaire)

Status: Active

Summary: Defines Cardano's on-chain governance system introduced in the Conway era. Establishes the governance framework with DReps (Delegated Representatives), a Constitutional Committee, and SPO governance roles. All holders can participate in governance through delegation or direct voting.

Developer impact:

• Governance actions are on-chain transactions (parameter changes, treasury withdrawals, hard forks, constitutional committee updates, motions of no confidence)
• DRep registration and voting use specific transaction certificate types
• SDKs need Conway-era transaction support for governance features
• dApps can integrate governance features using CIP-95 wallet extensions

Key concepts:

• DRep: A delegated representative who votes on governance actions
• Constitutional Committee: A group that checks governance actions against the constitution
• Governance action: A proposal submitted on-chain with a deposit
• Ratification: The process by which DReps, SPOs, and the Constitutional Committee approve or reject actions

Mapping Topics to CIPs

When a developer describes a feature, map it to the relevant CIP:

Developer asks about...	Relevant CIP(s)
NFT metadata	CIP-25 (immutable), CIP-68 (updatable)
Wallet connection	CIP-30
Wallet governance	CIP-95 (extends CIP-30)
Message signing	CIP-8 (via CIP-30's signData)
Token metadata on-chain	CIP-68
Validator interface / types	CIP-57 (blueprint)
Programmable tokens	CIP-113
Governance / voting	CIP-1694
Reference inputs	CIP-31
Inline datums	CIP-32
Reference scripts	CIP-33
Collateral outputs	CIP-40
Multi-asset structure	CIP-14 (asset fingerprint)

References

• CIP repository: github.com/cardano-foundation/CIPs
• Shared principles: ../shared/PRINCIPLES.md