What are the main blockchain innovations that make Solana stand out?

by Clarence Oxford
Los Angeles CA (SPX) Nov 20, 2025

The history of Solana (SOL) began in 2017, when this cryptocurrency project was created to improve the solutions offered by other projects and to become a web-scale blockchain, where it was normal to take advantage of all the benefits of blockchain securely and quickly. Solana introduced numerous innovations to the world, demonstrating that any shortcoming can be addressed with a suitable solution, enabling it to thrive.

Solana blockchain supports over 50,000 transactions per second (TPS), which is an improved number compared with what the rest were previously offering. With this approach, Solana demonstrated that it is a significant competitor to the leading blockchain, Ethereum. This is why Solana has also earned the nickname 'Ethereum killer,' as it has addressed the most well-known shortcomings of its predecessors.

Solana also has a native token, SOL, which has begun to gather attention and establish itself as an important player in the crypto realm. Solana has become a favorite cryptocurrency to invest in, as it has been on an upward trend and is expected to continue growing in the future. However, it is essential to examine the Solana to USD price to determine the optimal moment to enter the market and add this amazing crypto to your portfolio.

In this article, we will delve deeper into the remarkable innovations of Solana, so keep reading to discover them.

Proof-of-History (PoH)

Proof-of-History (PoH) is an innovative consensus mechanism that Solana is leveraging. With this approach, Solana successfully addressed the shortcomings associated with previous blockchains. Bitcoin is the one that attracted the most criticism for its electrical consumption. Bitcoin utilizes a Proof-of-Work (PoW) consensus mechanism, where miners must solve complex mathematical problems. Even though this practice was highly secure, it consumed a lot of energy, which is why other crypto projects started to look for solutions to this problem.

In the case of Solana, this is represented by a Proof-of-History (PoH) solution. In the past, all consensus mechanisms required validators to add new blocks to the blockchain. However, Solana proved that there were also other possibilities worth exploring. The PoH model is a computational sequence that checks the passage of time between two important events. This model works thanks to cryptography, which secures the platform.

There are many advantages that PoH brings to Solana. Here are some of them:

+ Time-stamping: This model maintains a historical record, allowing the blockchain to prove that the event occurred at a specific moment.

+ Efficient transactions: PoH features a cryptographic clock, which enables validators to communicate only when necessary, resulting in more efficient transaction processing.

+ Scalability: With the help of the PoH, Solana is also a highly scalable project, capable of processing a large number of transactions per second.

Besides making Solana more efficient and scalable, the PoH model has also helped Solana increase its popularity and differentiate itself from other crypto projects.

Tower BFT

The Tower BFT (Byzantine Fault Tolerance) operates on top of the PoH consensus mechanism to leverage a network transaction consensus. With this consensus, Solana can reduce latency and validate transactions more rapidly.

Solana Cluster

The Solana Cluster is created to maintain the integrity of the blockchain and manage transactions using the native token of the platform. Clusters represent a collection of validators, which makes this blockchain function. There are two types of clusters: co-existing clusters that share one genesis block, and independently owned clusters.

Turbine

Another essential element on the Solana blockchain is the Turbine. This innovative element is a multi-layer block propagation protocol, which plays the main role in broadcasting the transaction shards across the blockchain. This element utilizes the User Datagram Protocol, enabling it to offer low latency and high throughput on this network. Additionally, thanks to this feature, communication between nodes becomes significantly more seamless.

What are the main use cases for Solana's blockchain?

Given that Solana has leveraged numerous innovations, this blockchain is also home to a long list of advantages. Here are some of them.

Creation of decentralized applications

The Solana blockchain can facilitate the creation of numerous decentralized applications, thanks to the presence of smart contracts. Ethereum also supports them, but many advantages make Solana superior. For starters, Solana boasts a faster transaction speed, allowing developers to create a vast array of applications. Decentralized applications (dApps) are another example. These dApps are used most in Decentralized Finance (DeFi), but they can also present many opportunities in other industries.

Non-Fungible Token (NFTs)

The creation of NFTs is also a main use case that the Solana blockchain enables. As a result, Solana has been able to mint over 21 million NFTs. Solana is also home to numerous NFT marketplaces, where creators can sell their unique digital pieces.

Play-To-Earn games

Another significant advantage of Solana is that it can also facilitate the creation of play-to-earn games, which have the potential to reshape the future of gaming. In the past, in traditional games, players could only play because this activity brought them happiness. However, with the introduction of crypto games, this is no longer the case, as now, players can also immerse themselves in the crypto games created on Solana. There are already examples of powerful games created there, and among the most popular names we can mention Aurory, Mini Royale, and Panzerdogs.

The bottom line

Solana is a very interesting platform that has helped create high hopes about the future of blockchain. Compared to all the other options, Solana has truly found innovative solutions that have helped it stand out as one of the most important blockchains. This crypto project leverages numerous tech innovations, and in this article, we have explored some of them. Thanks to them, Solana has multiple use cases, which can generate more hype around it and help it gain mainstream adoption.