diff --git a/native/pom.xml b/native/pom.xml
index cd0d1c10..83d1166b 100644
--- a/native/pom.xml
+++ b/native/pom.xml
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@
     <arcadedb.version>26.10.2</arcadedb.version>
     <!-- Same as native/pom.xml native.graalvm.version: the builder (GraalVM CE 25.0.2) must match. -->
     <graalvm.version>25.0.2</graalvm.version>
-    <!-- phase 5: -Dnative.opt=-O2 (CE: -O2 and -O3 are the same) and -Dgraalvm.version=25.4.4.1.1 for the newest CE; -Os stays the default for the old numbers -->
+    <!-- build-image.sh passes -Dnative.opt=-O3 (#159: on CE 25.4.4.1.1 -O3 is not -O2; timed, warm geomean 0.736 at 1.62x the library size) and -Dgraalvm.version=25.4.4.1.1; -Os stays the default for the old numbers -->
     <native.opt>-Os</native.opt>
     <native-maven-plugin.version>1.1.14</native-maven-plugin.version>
     <maven.compiler.release>25</maven.compiler.release>
diff --git a/native/scripts/build-image.sh b/native/scripts/build-image.sh
index afebba63..606181cc 100755
--- a/native/scripts/build-image.sh
+++ b/native/scripts/build-image.sh
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 #!/usr/bin/env bash
-# Build the native image (the shared library the `arcadedb` wheel ships): GraalVM CE 25.4.4.1.1, -O2, FFM unbound Highway
+# Build the native image (the shared library the `arcadedb` wheel ships): GraalVM CE 25.4.4.1.1, -O3, FFM unbound Highway
 # handle (fastops.mode 1), -H:-VectorAPISupport (CE crash oracle/graal#14751), engine jars of the pinned RELEASE (arcadedb.version, from
 # Maven Central, never a local SNAPSHOT), local symbols deleted (the default: a smaller image than the phase 7/8 profiling builds).
 # MARCH (default compatibility = baseline x86-64, what a manylinux wheel promises, PEP 600; x86-64-v3 is the GraalVM CE 25.4 default and the faster reference).
@@ -34,7 +34,7 @@ export JAVA_HOME=$G PATH=$G/bin:$PATH
 export NATIVE_IMAGE_OPTIONS="-J-Dfastops.mode=1 -J-Xmx$XMX -H:-VectorAPISupport -march=$MARCH${NI_EXTRA:+ $NI_EXTRA}"
 cd "$WT/native"
 rm -f "target/$LIBFILE" "$OUT/$LIBFILE"
-./mvnw -B --no-transfer-progress -f pom.xml -DskipTests -Darcadedb.version="$ENGINE" -Dgraalvm.version=25.4.4.1.1 -Dnative.opt=-O2 package > "$OUT/build.log" 2>&1
+./mvnw -B --no-transfer-progress -f pom.xml -DskipTests -Darcadedb.version="$ENGINE" -Dgraalvm.version=25.4.4.1.1 -Dnative.opt=-O3 package > "$OUT/build.log" 2>&1
 # Windows: the Maven plugin hands native-image its arguments in an @args file that it deletes at exit, so build.log has no
 # "native-image -cp <classpath> --shared" line, which gen_notices.py reads. Append one: the glue jar plus the runtime classpath that
 # dependency:build-classpath resolves with the same properties (checked on Linux: the same 59 jars as the logged classpath, plus the glue jar).
diff --git a/native/wheel/build_wheel.py b/native/wheel/build_wheel.py
index c07c96d0..01122116 100644
--- a/native/wheel/build_wheel.py
+++ b/native/wheel/build_wheel.py
@@ -238,7 +238,7 @@ def sub(m):
     (dst / "_build_info.py").write_text(
         f'"""Written by native-wheel/build_wheel.py."""\n'
         f'ENGINE_VERSION = "{a.engine}"  # the ArcadeDB engine release compiled into {libname}\n'
-        f'NATIVE_IMAGE = "GraalVM CE 25.4.4.1.1, -O2, -march={a.march}"\n'
+        f'NATIVE_IMAGE = "GraalVM CE 25.4.4.1.1, -O3, -march={a.march}"\n'
         f'NATIVE_MARCH = "{a.march}"  # lib.py checks the CPU only for an x86-64-v3 image\n'
         f'SOURCE_COMMIT = "{commit}"  # ArcadeData/arcadedb-python commit of the bindings and the Java glue\n',
         encoding="utf-8",