Solana reduces network slot time to 350ms in first speed upgrade

Solana has implemented its first network speed upgrade since its inception, reducing target slot times from 400 milliseconds to 350 milliseconds. This change is the initial phase of a four-stage plan under the SIMD-0525 improvement proposal, which aims to progressively lower slot times to 300ms, 250ms, and eventually 200ms.

Jacob Creech, Vice President of Technology at the Solana Foundation, described the move as entering ‘a new era of 350ms.’ The reduction in slot time is intended to decrease confirmation latency, allowing transactions to be processed and confirmed more quickly.

The remaining stages of the rollout are tentatively targeted for the Agave v4.2 upgrade, a validator client developed by Anza. The phased approach allows validator operators and developers to test network stability and behavior as block production speeds increase.