— It’s not slow. It’s smart.
Bitcoin’s 10-minute block interval isn’t a relic of “outdated tech” — it’s a deliberate compromise between security, decentralization, and network resilience.
A block propagates to most of the world in about 10 seconds. With 10-minute intervals, the probability of two miners finding a block simultaneously is just 1.7%.
What if we made blocks every minute? Conflict risk jumps to 15%.
Here’s why that matters:
→ More wasted energy.
→ More orphaned blocks (valid blocks rejected by the network).
→ More chain splits: nodes disagree on the “true” chain.
Rewards shift from hash power to bandwidth.
The winner isn’t the strongest miner, but the one with the fastest internet.
Hello, data centers and centralization.
Other consequences of faster blocks:
→ 10x more data to store and transmit.
→ Expensive nodes: Hobbyists can’t afford hardware upgrades.
→ No improvement in finality: 60 fast blocks ≠ 6 secure ones.
→ Security risks rise: Shorter intervals weaken Proof-of-Work’s attack resistance.
→ Node dropout: Centralized mining pools dominate.
10 minutes isn’t perfect. It’s optimal.
For a global network that needs time to synchronize, propagate, and validate without breaking.
Bitcoin isn’t lazy. It understands where trust comes from.
Want faster Bitcoin? Build Layer 2.
But the base layer must stay slow and robust.
Interested in a deep dive on why altering Bitcoin’s core parameters is dangerous — and how Lightning solves speed without compromises? Let me know in the comments.
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