Outcomes post child-hotkey update

[tobiashomie]

I've got a question about validator incentives following the update on Sep 9, 2024.

Child hotkey take

With this feature, you can now set a take rate for child hotkey delegation that is different from the take rate for delegation by nominator. In addition, there is no maximum limit on a hotkey's total stake (i.e., no maximum limit on a hotkey's sum of delegated stake + child hotkey stake).

In my view, this helps keep the ecosystem more secure from malicious activity in case a validator key is compromised. At least with this setup, other subnets aren’t as vulnerable, as long as the validator uses different hotkeys for each subnet.

However, I’m still wondering what other effects this update might have on the community.

And to be honest, I feel this change also makes it tougher for new subnets to get emissions from validators. Previously, validators needed to set up on each subnet to boost their APY, but now, they no longer have to. As a result, teams behind new subnets will likely have to invest more time into convincing validators to set up on their subnet, rather than focusing purely on development.