Gm! This week we're joined by Brennan Watt to discuss Solana latest upgrade Alpenglow. We deep dive into the Anza origin story, Alpenglow's impact on the Solana network, how to reduce malicious MEV, the past, present & future of Solana & much more. Enjoy! -- Follow Brennan: https://x.com/bw_solana Follow Jack: https://x.com/whosknave Follow Lightspeed: https://twitter.com/Lightspeedpodhq Subscribe to the Lightspeed Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/lightspeed -- Grab your tickets to Permissionless IV. Use code LIGHTSPEED10 for 10% off: https://blockworks.co/event/permissionless-iv -- Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/ -- Zenrock is a permissionless, decentralized custody network backed by 1RoundTable Partners, 10T, Maven11, and Spartan. Live on Jupiter, $ROCK is the native token for transactions within the Zenrock ecosystem and secures Zenrock’s decentralized custody network. The first application launching on Zenrock is zenBTC – yield-bearing Bitcoin on Solana. zenBTC will be live in April 2025. Visit zenbtc.io to learn about earning yield with Bitcoin on Solana.

(00:00) Introduction

(01:40) What Is Anza?

(03:26) Alpenglow: Solana’s Latest Upgrade

(08:27) ZenRockAd

(09:16) How Does Solana Work Today?

(15:34) How Does Alpenglow Achieve Faster Finality?

(20:32) Alpenglow’s Impact On Network Security

(22:47) Liveness On Solana

(28:49) Doubling Blockspace

(34:09) ZenRock Ad

(34:58) Alpenglow’s Impact On Solana’s Economics

(38:18) The Incentive To Run A Solana Relayer

(42:00) How To Reduce Malicious MEV?

(44:52) When Will Alpenglow Launch?

(45:41) MEV On Solana

(49:56) Competing With The Firedancer Team

(57:37) How Does Solana Remain Competitive?

(01:02:11) How To Rollout Network Upgrades?

(01:09:07) What Is Anza Working On?

Disclaimers: Lightspeed was kickstarted by a grant from the Solana Foundation. Nothing said on Lightspeed is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Mert, Jack, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

A Conversation with Dan Edwards