When discussing the scalability of blockchain technology, we often focus too much on computational power, particularly the number of transactions processed per second (TPS). However, even if we have unlimited computational resources, there is still a more fundamental limiting factor—network bandwidth.

Let's understand this problem through a simple calculation:

Assuming a typical blockchain transaction (containing signatures, nonce, addresses, and other information) is about 200 bytes, if a blockchain system aims to achieve a target of processing 1 million transactions per second, the amount of data that needs to be processed and transmitted per second will reach 200MB, equivalent to a bandwidth requirement of 1.6Gbps.

This number may seem small, but it is actually quite astonishing. It is important to note that the current average broadband speed for households worldwide is only a few dozen Mbps. Even for professional data centers, maintaining a consistent network transmission of 1.6 Gbps is a huge challenge. If all validation nodes are required to have such high bandwidth, the level of decentralization of the network will be significantly compromised.

Therefore, any blockchain project seriously considering achieving the "million TPS" goal must face a core issue: how to effectively manage and compress the massive data flow generated by a large number of transactions to alleviate bandwidth pressure?

Some cutting-edge blockchain projects have recognized the importance of this challenge. For example, some projects have elevated data compression technology to a strategic level equal to that of the transaction execution engine in their architectural design. Through a series of innovative technology combinations, these projects aim to significantly improve data transmission efficiency, paving the way for achieving truly scalable blockchains.

In general, on the road to pursuing high performance in blockchain, we cannot focus solely on improving computing power; we also need to consider how to optimize data transmission and storage. Only by addressing the challenges related to bandwidth at the infrastructure level can blockchain technology truly achieve large-scale applications and provide services to a broader user base.