Puffer, which builds transaction infrastructure for Ethereum, is developing a preconfirmation system that gives applications an early assurance about transaction results before Ethereum reaches finality. On Sept. 22, the company announced that Google Cloud would operate a gateway receiving transactions and guaranteeing their outcomes, with Puffer’s UniFi network first to use the service. UniFi and Puffer Preconf, the service issuing the guarantees, were still in testing as of Sept. 23, CEO Amir Forouzani told CryptoSlate. Ethereum uses 12-second slots to propose blocks, while finality generally takes minutes. Rollups (networks that process transactions separately before settling on Ethereum) can already provide earlier confirmations, but Puffer aims to add explicit financial backing. Its system was configured for 50-millisecond transaction times, while a failed preconfirmation would cost the gateway 1 ETH under the proposed design. Puffer says slashing (confiscating pledged collateral for rule violations) protects affected parties, although it has not explained who receives the penalized ETH or how compensation would be calculated and paid. The company’s July 2025 technical outline placed slashing in a later phase, and the latest responses did not establish when the penalty would become enforceable. Forouzani said no failures had occurred under the current design but did not provide a transaction count or observation period. Google Cloud would have another gateway take over if it went offline, and the first phase would launch without delegation from Ethereum’s base-layer validators. Applications would decide when customers could use funds, creating a trade-off between speed and the assurance required for larger or riskier transactions.