Revolutionizing Blockchain: Starknet Unleashes 'Quantum Leap' Upgrade for Lightning-Fast Transactions

Layer-2 Blockchain Starknet's ‘Quantum Leap

Following an overwhelmingly supported community vote, the long-awaited upgrade for Starknet, a layer-2 blockchain, also known as a "rollup," for the Ethereum blockchain, has successfully gone live on the mainnet. This significant milestone marks the deployment of Starknet's "Quantum Leap" upgrade, which was introduced early on Wednesday. The primary objective of this upgrade is to enhance the blockchain's transaction processing speed, measured in transactions per second (TPS), while simultaneously reducing confirmation times.

The Quantum Leap upgrade underwent rigorous testing on Starknet's Goerli testnet before gaining widespread approval through the community vote. Impressively, 97.91% of voters expressed their agreement to push this upgrade forward to the mainnet. The StarkWare team, responsible for the development of Starknet, reported that during testing, the TPS reached a peak of 90 on multiple occasions, while maintaining a consistent rate of 37 TPS. Prior to the Quantum Leap upgrade, StarkWare had informed CoinDesk that TPS would soar into the triple digits, a promise they have now fulfilled.

Acknowledging the slight deviation from their original projections, StarkWare CEO Uri Kolodny commented in a press release sent to CoinDesk, "Our intent with this upgrade was to achieve a potential TPS in the hundreds within Q3, and we were hoping the stress test would confirm that we were on track. Even a few dozen TPS at this early stage would have left us thrilled, but the results surpassed our expectations."

Additionally, the time-to-inclusion, which denotes the duration required to confirm and report a transaction, amounted to approximately 10 seconds, exceeding the initially anticipated timeframe. Kolodny seized this opportunity to emphasize the blockchain's performance, stating, "The numbers speak for themselves. They serve as an open invitation to all developers, regardless of their location, to put the network to the test."

Looking ahead, Starknet has outlined a roadmap that includes several planned upgrades scheduled for later this year. The primary objective of these upcoming enhancements is to enhance the scalability of the blockchain by reducing transaction fees and shortening block intervals. By implementing these measures, Starknet aims to further optimize its blockchain network and provide an improved user experience for all stakeholders.