Polkadot, a project aiming to promote blockchain interoperability, has proposed an upgrade to increase the number of parachains from 100 to 1,000. The network, which remains one of the leading projects in terms of market capitalization, has seen a decline in user activity over the past months, similar to most layer 1 networks.

A 90% Dip

The bear market in 2022 has had a major impact on the price of DOT, the native currency, which has fallen from a peak of $55 to $4 at the time of writing. Other altcoins such as Solana and Algorand have also seen significant price drops.

The Asynchronous Backing Update

The Asynchronous backing update is said to be the most significant evolution of parachain consensus since Polkadot launched parachains almost two years ago. This update includes a feature known as “pipelining,” which allows multiple parachain blocks to be processed simultaneously. By utilizing this feature, Polkadot can improve the network’s transaction processing speeds and increase the capacity of the network. The developer also aims to reduce blockchain validation time from 12 to 6 seconds. Furthermore, any parachain blocks that fail to be added on the first attempt can be reused, improving network efficiency and reducing wastage.

Conclusion

The Asynchronous Backing update has the potential to significantly increase the number of parachains on the Polkadot network and improve its scalability. If successful, the upgrade could catalyze demand for DOT and help to revive the network’s activity.