What Is the Significance of the “Bus Factor” in Assessing a Protocol’s Development Risk?

The "bus factor" is a measure of the concentration of critical knowledge within a development team. It represents the minimum number of core developers who, if they were to suddenly leave (e.g. hit by a bus), would halt the project.

A low bus factor indicates high development risk and centralization of knowledge. A high bus factor (more developers sharing critical knowledge) suggests a more resilient and decentralized development process, which is positive for long-term valuation.