New Ethereum Update Could Reduce Block Time by 33% and Increase Performance by 50%

A new Ethereum improvement proposal, EIP-7781, submitted on October 5, 2024, aims to reduce Ethereum’s lock time from 12 seconds to 8 seconds.

The update, introduced by Ben Adams, co-founder of Illyriad Games, could also improve data capacity and potentially increase network performance by 50%.

An important step for the future of Ethereum

In an October 6 post on X, a pseudonymous developer known as Cygaar praised EIP-7781 as the “first big” step in improving Ethereum’s L1 performance. They suggested that their implementation could reduce network bottlenecks and improve data capacity.

EIP-7781 is designed to extend the capacity of “blobs,” a temporary data structure that reduces rates in Layer 2 (L2) networks.

The proposed changes aim to improve core network performance while evenly distributing bandwidth usage. Some hope this will ultimately reduce peak demands without increasing the number of blocks or blobs to ensure smoother processing and lower latency, especially for L2s.

Many have expressed their support for the improvement proposal. In the GitHub thread, Ethereum Foundation researcher Justin Drake noted that the plan aligns with the broader scaling goals set by Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin as well as several other scaling organizations .

Drake said that reducing block time could improve the efficiency of decentralized exchanges (DEX) like Uniswap v3 by 22%, saving roughly $100 million each year in CEX-DEX arbitrage.

Additionally, experts say the update could improve the user experience of Ethereum smart contracts by reducing confirmation times by 33%. The changes would also spread peak load times more evenly across more slots, reducing strain during periods of high demand.

Potential concerns for soloists

Meanwhile, some developers are concerned about the plan’s impact on solo participants. According to some of them, shorter block times would require faster execution and more powerful hardware, increasing bandwidth and processing demands. It could pose challenges for individual participants using consumer-grade hardware.

In response to Cygaar’s post, Cinnehaim Ventures partner Adam Cochran described the EIP as “reasonable.” However, he stressed the need for the gas limit for each block to remain the same to make it feasible for most users.

The Information Science professor also warned that the increased demands could hinder Ethereum’s long-term decentralization goals by making it harder for everyday users to act as validators.

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