Ethereum developer Barnabé Monnot has proposed a significant change to the Ethereum network's block time, suggesting a reduction from 12 seconds to 6 seconds. This proposal, known as Ethereum Improvement Proposal 7782 (EIP-7782), aims to enhance transaction confirmation times, boost DeFi efficiency and improve the overall user experience by adjusting the timing of various blockchain operations. The discussion took place on June 21, 2025.
The core idea behind EIP-7782, originally created in October 2024, is to cut the slot time—the frequency at which new blocks are created—in half. This would be achieved by adjusting the timing of various blockchain operations. Monnot explained that shorter slot times would improve the confirmation service, potentially increasing the economic value the network captures as a settlement and confirmation layer. The proposal is slated for inclusion in the Glamsterdam update, expected in late 2026. By then, the network is anticipated to have undergone substantial scaling, with blocks reaching three times the current gas limit and eight times the blob supply.
The potential benefits of this change are multifold. Shorter slot times would lead to faster transaction inclusion, making the chain more responsive. Wallets would display fresher data following transaction inclusion, and on-chain data would update more frequently. This would result in smoother experiences across wallets, DApps, and layer-2 networks. Moreover, it would become more difficult to censor transactions due to the increased frequency of block production, as there would be more block proposers per minute.
Decentralized finance (DeFi) and trading activities stand to gain significantly. Faster price updates on decentralized exchanges (DEXs) and reduced losses from arbitrage traders exploiting price differences are anticipated. Trading fees are also expected to decrease as markets become more efficient, and liquidity in automated market makers (AMMs) could increase. Justin Drake, an Ethereum researcher, estimates that DEXs like Uniswap v3 could become 1.22x more efficient, potentially saving $100 million from price discrepancies that arbitrageurs currently profit from, ultimately benefiting users with better execution.
However, the proposal does come with potential trade-offs. Validators with slower or poorly connected setups may struggle with the tighter timing requirements. The increased frequency of consensus messages could lead to higher bandwidth demands. There is also a greater potential for network congestion during peak usage periods. To mitigate these risks, extensive testing would be essential to prevent network instability and ensure the continued functionality of smart contracts.
EIP-7782 proposes specific technical adjustments to achieve the six-second slot time. These include changing the block proposal sub-slot from 4 seconds to 3 seconds, and altering the attestation and aggregation proposal sub-slot durations from 4 seconds to 1.5 seconds. These changes aim to maintain network stability while achieving the desired reduction in slot time.
It's worth noting that a similar proposal, EIP-7781, was introduced earlier with the aim of reducing slot time to 8 seconds. This earlier proposal also suggested increasing the number of data blobs per block or raising the gas limit to further enhance throughput.
The Ethereum community seems enthusiastic about EIP-7782, recognizing its potential to enhance the network's performance and user experience.
