A proposal would drastically reduce block times and increase the blockchain’s capacity
A new proposal could soon bring a major speed boost to the Ethereum blockchain, potentially increasing its efficiency by reducing block times. Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP) 7781, introduced by Ben Adams on October 5, suggests slashing block times from 12 seconds to 8 seconds, a 33% reduction. This adjustment could lead to a 50% increase in Ethereum’s overall data capacity, greatly enhancing the network’s throughput.
There’s a new EIP to increase Ethereum’s throughput by 50%.
– 12 second block times -> 8 seconds
– 6 data blobs per block -> 9 blobs per block
– DEXes become around 1.22x more efficientIf approved, this would be a huge first step in improving Ethereum L1’s performance. pic.twitter.com/MkX5gbiBFR
— cygaar (@0xCygaar) October 6, 2024
The proposal also seeks to improve rollup latency and boost the capacity of temporary data structures known as blobs, which could lower transaction fees on Ethereum’s layer-2 solutions. According to developers, this move is a significant step toward addressing scalability at Ethereum’s base layer. Ethereum has largely focused on layer-2 networks to manage scaling, but EIP-7781 would mark a shift toward improving the mainnet itself.
Justin Drake, a researcher with the Ethereum Foundation, endorsed the proposal on GitHub. He noted that reducing block times would improve decentralized exchanges like Uniswap by making them around 22% more efficient. Additionally, the changes could save approximately $100 million annually in arbitrage between centralized and decentralized exchanges, leading to better user experiences and lower costs.
However, the proposal has raised concerns about its potential impact on solo stakers, as shorter block times could result in more demanding hardware requirements. This could affect smaller, independent stakers by increasing the computational load needed to keep up with the blockchain. Developers, such as Adam Cochran from Cinnehaim Ventures, expressed cautious support, emphasizing the importance of further testing to ensure it doesn’t exclude home-based stakers.
Despite these concerns, the proposal could mark an important step toward faster transactions and greater efficiency on the Ethereum network, aligning with broader goals for scaling and network decentralization.
