Filecoin has launched Fast Finality (F3), cutting block confirmation times from hours to just a few minutes using GossiPBFT. F3 boosts Filecoin’s support for low-latency apps, while partnerships expand its role in AI and decentralized data integrity. Filecoin finally enabled Fast Finality (F3) on its mainnet on April 30, 2025. This step is a new milestone in the history of the decentralized storage network. Previously, transactions on Filecoin took around 7 hours to be completely final. But now? It only takes a few minutes. Confirmations that used to take 900 epochs now only take 5-10 epochs. Crazy, isn’t that? If you’ve ever felt annoyed because you had to wait a long time for a transaction to be completely valid, now is the time to breathe a sigh of relief. F3 is here as a solution with a new consensus system called GossiPBFT, a kind of collaboration between a fast information dissemination protocol and a disturbance tolerance mechanism. It runs alongside Filecoin’s traditional consensus system, Expected Consensus, so nothing has been changed—just the turbo feature has been added. Fast Finality (F3) is now LIVE on Filecoin Mainnet! F3 drastically reduces finality — from 7 hours down to just minutes, bringing a ~100x improvement to how quickly transactions are confirmed on #Filecoin. pic.twitter.com/Gsn3fhRoqh — Filecoin (@Filecoin) April 29, 2025 Catching Up, Targeting Low Latency Applications Transaction speed is not just about user convenience. In the crypto space, confirmation time can be life. Applications such as real-time payments, interactive smart contracts, and on-chain games all require a fast and reliable system. Without it, it’s hard to grow. Filecoin seems to be very aware of this. This Fast Finality upgrade has actually been prepared since April 14, 2025, through the launch of the latest network version called “Teep.” In that update, they also simplified the costs per sector and embedded support for temporary storage. So F3 is not a sudden project—everything has been designed well in advance. Furthermore, the presence of F3 also encourages integration with other blockchains. Cross-chain transactions can be carried out more efficiently because the shorter finalization waiting time reduces the risk of double spending. If in the past there were those who thought, “Is Filecoin only for data storage?” Now you should think again. On the other hand, investor interest has also increased. CNF reported that the inflow of funds into Filecoin in the fourth quarter of 2024 jumped 21 percent quarterly to reach $99 million. This means that not only users are increasingly confident, but also financial institutions and parties interested in FIL-based loans. In the AI ​​Era, Filecoin Has an Additional Role It turns out that it’s not just about fast transactions. On April 28, Clara Tsao, co-founder of the Filecoin Foundation, spoke on stage at the AI ​​Summit, a side event of Consensus 2025. She said that Filecoin could help ensure the authenticity of data—especially now, when AI-generated content and human content are increasingly difficult to distinguish. With blockchain, Filecoin can be a “filter” for information, distinguishing between what is real and what is the result of algorithmic synthesis. And this is not just talk. In its quarterly report dated April 25, 2025, the Filecoin Foundation said that AI projects such as Recall, Theoriq, and Ungate AI are already using Filecoin storage. They want the data they process to be truly trustworthy, and blockchain is considered the right answer. In fact, Filecoin has also started to be active in the scene of preserving cultural archives, collaborating with The Defiant and the Internet Archive. Meanwhile, as of press time, FIL is trading at about $2.72, down 2.69% over the last 24 hours and moving sideways over the last 7 days.