Now that the code for HF21 is complete, the Steemit blockchain team has shifted their focus entirely to completing Steemit’s Smart Media Tokens protocol (or “SMTs”).
For those who don’t know, Smart Media Tokens are a token-launching protocol similar to ERC20s on Ethereum, but with all the state-of-the-properties enabled by the Steem blockchain, like three-second fee-less transfers. SMTs will allow anyone to launch their own STEEM-like token with customizable features including Founders Tokens, Token Emission Rates, Proof-of-Brain, ICO Smart Contracts, and more. You can find more information as well as the SMT Whitepaper by heading over to https://smt.steem.com/
We are not yet ready to release a specific timeline on SMTs, because we want to hear from more community developers before we finalize the features which will be added to the initial version of SMTs. Based on our initial outreach, the demand for SMTs is still extremely high. Despite the delay, no other blockchain project has managed to deliver the feature set that SMTs will have, because no other project has the Steem blockchain as a foundation.
One of the many reasons that we chose to develop SMTs was our belief that, as an application-specific blockchain protocol, Steem was uniquely suited to hosting powerful tokens with unparalleled features. The fact that no other protocol has yet to meet this demand validates this view.
Because Smart Media Tokens are already delayed, we are doing everything we can to simplify the protocol while still giving developers all the features they need from a decentralized token protocol with Proof-of-Brain. One example of such changes is our decision to remove “Hidden Caps” from the ICO code.
There was a time when projects would offer tokens for sale without disclosing the amount of contributions required for a successful launch. With the benefit of hindsight, it has become clear that such ICOs were mainly performed by untrustworthy actors. After consulting with community developers, we have decided to remove this feature. Not only will removing hidden caps eliminate a surprising degree of complexity, and by extension engineering work, but it will also help ensure that more SMTs are legitimate. That’s why one of our top priorities is removing code relating to these hidden caps, which will simplify the process of completing SMTs and enable us to deliver the protocol on an acceptable timeline.
We have identified a number of places where the protocol can be simplified without reducing its functionality, and will continue to look for any opportunity to accelerate the release of SMTs while maintaining their potency.
We understand that the wait for Smart Media Tokens has been a long one and we appreciate those users and developers who have stuck with Steem. Fortunately, that wait was not entirely in vain. The addition of Resource Credits to Steem in HF20 and the release of MIRA were critical to ensuring that the Steem blockchain was sufficiently scalable to support the dramatic increase in activity we expect to see once developers and businesses begin launching SMTs. While we wish SMTs hadn't been delayed, Steem is now in a much better position to add Smart Media Tokens. We do apologize for the delay, and hope you can bear with us just a little bit longer!
We will continue to release updates through 
Stay tuned and Steem On.
The Steemit Team
