I did this post a little while ago:
@jk6276/getting-started-in-cosmos-atom-beginners-guide

A lot of the recent benefits around holding and staking ATOM have been the airdrop's. The biggest thing coming for Cosmos chain itself is interchain security, which will come soon. What this means is that Cosmos validators will be able to validate other chains also, and then their delegators can earn multiple tokens aside from ATOM.

ATOM at the moment isn't really capturing much value from all the growth in the broader eco-system around it. Each chain is separate, and ATOM isn't like Polka Dot where the linked chains are auctioned slots.

The network effect is strong, but ATOM is kind of the safe, low risk play in the space.