That's an excellent and very common point of tension. Speed is absolutely critical—it's what enables real utility beyond just holding an asset—but you're right to look at the bigger picture. The real "next big thing" isn't just raw speed, but a blockchain's ability to deliver that speed reliably at scale while keeping costs near zero. That's the trifecta. Your friend is likely fixated on Solana because it's the current leader in publicly demonstrating this, processing thousands of transactions per second for fractions of a cent. Its unique Proof-of-History mechanism is the engineering reason it can do this.
However, the more compelling argument isn't just the specs, but what those specs unlock. This speed and low cost have allowed an entire ecosystem of fast, usable applications (DeFi, NFTs, gaming) to be built on it that simply wouldn't function well on slower, more expensive chains. So, while speed is the headline, the real metric is developer and user adoption driven by that performance. I read a solid guide that breaks down exactly why transaction speed has become the central battleground and how it's defining the next generation of blockchain use. It might help frame your group's debate beyond the hype. Check it out: https://getwpcaptcha.com/the-next-big-thing-in-cryptocurrency-a-guide-to-fast-transactions/
