Solana activated a 250-millisecond target slot time on Sept. 18, shortening each four-slot leader window to one second. Early Sept. 20 measurements show an average slot duration of about 266ms with a 0.05% skip rate. Per-slot work limits shrink with slot duration, falling from 62.5 million compute units at 250ms to 50 million at 200ms, so faster block cadence does not automatically increase capacity. Initial readings are encouraging, but client software concentration (87.4% on 4.x versions), infrastructure provider concentration (TeraSwitch holds 22.1% of active stake) and geographic distance between validators (median penalty of 122ms for leaders more than 8,000km apart) reduce the margins available for handoffs and repair operations.
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