Coinbase : Towards an Ultra-Fast and Affordable User Experience for Base
The upgrade plans for Base, unveiled by lead developer Jesse Pollak, are ambitious. The goal is to reduce transaction confirmation times to just 200 milliseconds and maintain network fees consistently below $0.01.
These improvements are part of a broader plan to process over 200 transactions per second in the short term, with the ultimate goal of achieving one million TPS. This would make Base one of the most scalable blockchain networks globally.
But that’s not all. Base is also moving towards a more decentralized architecture by shifting key protocol components, like base state transition logic, directly onto the Ethereum Layer 1 through smart contracts.
This evolution would allow multiple developers and validators to independently shape the network’s evolution, thus enhancing its decentralization. Infrastructure improvements are also planned to support these changes.
Flashblocks and Capacity Boost
A central element of the upgrade is Flashblocks, a system enabling “quasi-instant preconfirmation blocks” to provide a faster and seamless user experience. The team is already testing it on the testnet and plans to deploy this feature on the mainnet by summer 2025.
The network backed by Coinbase also aims to increase its gas capacity, moving from 25 million gas per second (Mgas/s) to 50 Mgas/s in the second quarter, eventually reaching 250 Mgas/s by year-end. This marks a 100-fold improvement in its original capacity.
Overall, Jesse Pollak is confident that these enhancements will significantly strengthen Base’s speed and efficiency. Once fully implemented, they could position the network as a strong competitor against established blockchain chains like Solana and Sui.
“Just got back from ETH Dublin and I’m way more bullish on Base… There’s something really special building on Base, and I’m so excited to be a part of it. I can’t imagine building anywhere else.” shares developer Crunklez.
Base’s major upgrade plans demonstrate a clear ambition to directly compete with leading blockchain networks. It remains to be seen how these changes will impact the crypto landscape in the months ahead.
