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MFTV #10: Miner-Aligned Scaling Solutions for Bitcoin | with Drivechains author, Paul Sztorc 🔗 YouTube: 🌿 Spotify: CEO of LayerTwo Labs, Paul Sztorc (Paul Sztorc), first proposed the Drivechains upgrade (BIP300/301) to enable Bitcoin-native Layer 2s that are trustless and economically aligned with miners. Today, Paul joins Head of...

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BITCOIN RAILS #71: Expecting Hardforks | with Drivechains author Paul Sztorc 🔗 YouTube: 🌿 Spotify: Paul Sztorc founder and CEO of LayerTwo Labs and author of Bitcoin Improvement Proposals 300 and 301 (Drivechains), has been one of Bitcoin's most persistent—and controversial—thinkers, advocating for merge-mined sidechains as a way to dramatically expand Bitcoin's functionality while preserving the security of the base layer. Following our previous episode introducing his proposed Bitcoin hard fork, eCash, we discuss how the project has evolved in recent months, what to expect when the fork launches on mainnet, and Paul's perspectives on today's Layer 2 landscape and the soon-to-activate BIP 110 soft fork. An entertaining, popcorn-style conversation with one of Bitcoin's most unconventional thinkers, this episode offers diverse—and at times irreverent—commentary on some of the most important technical debates shaping Bitcoin's future. This episode of Bitcoin Rails is brought to you by: LayerTwo Labs LayerTwo Labs — developing research, software, and technologies for scaling Bitcoin via the integration of Drivechains (BIP 300/301) Hashi on Sui — a primitive for executing Bitcoin DeFi transactions, without having to trust a federated bridge or other centralized entity BitBox BitBox — an open-source Bitcoin-only hardware wallet, with smooth UX and no compromises on security. Check out Bitbox [dot] swiss and use code BITCOINRAILS to get a discount TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 — Intro 00:16 — The Coldcard exploit 09:37 — Can Bitcoin still soft fork? 15:30 — Paul's hard fork 26:12 — BIP 110's fork and the ghost of SegWit 42:03 — How drivechains work and eCash 53:00 — Quantum resistance and OP_CAT 1:01:44 — Launching a drivechain and the OP_RETURN debate 1:08:57 — The BIP 110 endgame: Udi trolling, hashrate, and Ocean 1:13:54 — Why Stratum V2 is a bad idea 1:20:33 — The decline of maximalism and the road ahead
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BITCOIN RAILS #71: Expecting Hardforks | with Drivechains author Paul Sztorc 🔗 YouTube: 🌿 Spotify: Paul Sztorc founder and CEO of LayerTwo Labs and author of Bitcoin Improvement Proposals 300 and 301 (Drivechains), has been one of Bitcoin's most persistent—and controversial—thinkers, advocating for merge-mined sidechains as a way to dramatically expand Bitcoin's functionality while preserving the security of the base layer. Following our previous episode introducing his proposed Bitcoin hard fork, eCash, we discuss how the project has evolved in recent months, what to expect when the fork launches on mainnet, and Paul's perspectives on today's Layer 2 landscape and the soon-to-activate BIP 110 soft fork. An entertaining, popcorn-style conversation with one of Bitcoin's most unconventional thinkers, this episode offers diverse—and at times irreverent—commentary on some of the most important technical debates shaping Bitcoin's future. This episode of Bitcoin Rails is brought to you by: LayerTwo Labs LayerTwo Labs — developing research, software, and technologies for scaling Bitcoin via the integration of Drivechains (BIP 300/301) Hashi on Sui — a primitive for executing Bitcoin DeFi transactions, without having to trust a federated bridge or other centralized entity BitBox BitBox — an open-source Bitcoin-only hardware wallet, with smooth UX and no compromises on security. Check out Bitbox [dot] swiss and use code BITCOINRAILS to get a discount TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 — Intro 00:16 — The Coldcard exploit 09:37 — Can Bitcoin still soft fork? 15:30 — Paul's hard fork 26:12 — BIP 110's fork and the ghost of SegWit 42:03 — How drivechains work and eCash 53:00 — Quantum resistance and OP_CAT 1:01:44 — Launching a drivechain and the OP_RETURN debate 1:08:57 — The BIP 110 endgame: Udi trolling, hashrate, and Ocean 1:13:54 — Why Stratum V2 is a bad idea 1:20:33 — The decline of maximalism and the road ahead

Isabel Foxen Duke⚡️

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MFTV #11: BITCOIN MINING AND THE RACE FOR AI POWER | with MARA CEO Fred Thiel (Fred Thiel) 🔗 YouTube: 🌿 Spotify: "You can't do AI, HPC, or Bitcoin without electrons. Acquire electrons, then generate maximum value per electron." MARA is one of the largest Bitcoin miners in the world, and it’s now moving into the energy and AI/HPC infrastructure territory the whole industry is racing for. What happens to Bitcoin mining when the race for AI power is quickly gaining popularity? In his second appearance on MFTV, Fred rejoins Head of MARA Foundation Isabel Foxen Duke⚡️ to explain what's driving that race. AI inference has skyrocketed demand for power, and the bottleneck is energized land — places where the electrons are already flowing. Fred also lays out MARA's position: a power portfolio few can match, a partnership with Starwood Digital Ventures (a large-scale data center operator with deep hyperscaler and financing experience), and an in-house team spanning digital infrastructure operations, energy, and capital markets. Bitcoin mining, meanwhile, becomes the load that monetizes power the moment it switches on. A conversation about energy, AI, and how the assets a Bitcoin miner spent years accumulating map onto the most contested market in tech.

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Isabel Foxen Duke⚡️

24,580 views • 3 months ago

BITCOIN RAILS #50: HISTORY OF SEGWIT & TAPROOT | with Pieter Wuille 🔗 YOUTUBE: A primary maintainer of Bitcoin Core from 2011-2022, Pieter Wuille is arguably the most influential developer in Bitcoin’s history since Satoshi himself. After receiving keys to the Bitcoin codebase from Gavin Andresen, who was tasked with maintaining the codebase by Satoshi Nakamoto, Pieter went on to implement some of Bitcoin’s most dramatic and influential upgrades, including but not limited to: - Implementation of Bitcoin’s Taproot and Segwit upgrades - Implementation of libsecp256k + Bitcoin’s unique encoding structure for the cryptography securing all Bitcoin public/private keys - The first import/export feature for Bitcoin private keys into Bitcoin (now Bitcoin Core) - Development of hierarchical deterministic (HD) wallets, enabling backups via a single seedphrase and paving the way for seedphrases themselves - DER signatures, Miniscript, and so much more A truly special episode of Bitcoin Rails, this is a rare long-form interview with one of the most important historical figures in the arc of Bitcoin’s development. Pieter and I walk through how Bitcoin consensus works in practice, the history of Bitcoin's most critical early developments, and the key role of his good friend, Greg Maxwell, nearly every step of the way. This episode of Bitcoin Rails is powered by: — Best In Slot (Best in Slot | BRC2.0 🧑‍🍳) - the leading API for Ordinals and BRC-20 data aggregation and indexing. — Spark (Lightspark) - a statechains implementation advancing Bitcoin-powered payments. — Citrea (Citrea | Mainnet Live 🍊🍋) - a leading Bitcoin rollup technology and BitVM alliance contributor. TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 Intro 00:42 Early Days in Bitcoin 01:25 First Contributions to Bitcoin Core 04:38 Challenges and Innovations in Bitcoin Development 06:54 The Hal Finney Challenge 12:16 Bitcoin Core Contributors Back Then 14:18 The Creation of HD Wallets and Seed Phrases 17:47 Greg Maxwell Role and Relationship 21:00 Implementing Libsecp256k1 28:39 Why Did Satoshi Choose ECDSA 33:34 Addressing OpenSSL Issues 40:41 Why Pieter Wrote BIP 66 47:54 BIP 103 Proposal and Initial Reactions 49:57 SegWit Development and Implementation 01:05:39 Taproot's History, Details, and Benefits 01:11:09 Why Taproot Has No Hashed Addresses 01:16:55 Pieter's Thoughts on BitVM and other non-softfork dependent scaling solutions cc Robin Linus 🥖 01:18:27 Non-Soft Fork Scaling Solutions 01:23:03 Future Consensus Changes and Challenges 01:25:28 Bitcoin's Miner Centralization and Security Concerns (e.g. MEV) cc Matt Corallo 🟠 01:34:48 Miniscript: Simplifying Bitcoin Script? cc Rob Hamilton
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BITCOIN RAILS #50: HISTORY OF SEGWIT & TAPROOT | with Pieter Wuille 🔗 YOUTUBE: A primary maintainer of Bitcoin Core from 2011-2022, Pieter Wuille is arguably the most influential developer in Bitcoin’s history since Satoshi himself. After receiving keys to the Bitcoin codebase from Gavin Andresen, who was tasked with maintaining the codebase by Satoshi Nakamoto, Pieter went on to implement some of Bitcoin’s most dramatic and influential upgrades, including but not limited to: - Implementation of Bitcoin’s Taproot and Segwit upgrades - Implementation of libsecp256k + Bitcoin’s unique encoding structure for the cryptography securing all Bitcoin public/private keys - The first import/export feature for Bitcoin private keys into Bitcoin (now Bitcoin Core) - Development of hierarchical deterministic (HD) wallets, enabling backups via a single seedphrase and paving the way for seedphrases themselves - DER signatures, Miniscript, and so much more A truly special episode of Bitcoin Rails, this is a rare long-form interview with one of the most important historical figures in the arc of Bitcoin’s development. Pieter and I walk through how Bitcoin consensus works in practice, the history of Bitcoin's most critical early developments, and the key role of his good friend, Greg Maxwell, nearly every step of the way. This episode of Bitcoin Rails is powered by: — Best In Slot (Best in Slot | BRC2.0 🧑‍🍳) - the leading API for Ordinals and BRC-20 data aggregation and indexing. — Spark (Lightspark) - a statechains implementation advancing Bitcoin-powered payments. — Citrea (Citrea | Mainnet Live 🍊🍋) - a leading Bitcoin rollup technology and BitVM alliance contributor. TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 Intro 00:42 Early Days in Bitcoin 01:25 First Contributions to Bitcoin Core 04:38 Challenges and Innovations in Bitcoin Development 06:54 The Hal Finney Challenge 12:16 Bitcoin Core Contributors Back Then 14:18 The Creation of HD Wallets and Seed Phrases 17:47 Greg Maxwell Role and Relationship 21:00 Implementing Libsecp256k1 28:39 Why Did Satoshi Choose ECDSA 33:34 Addressing OpenSSL Issues 40:41 Why Pieter Wrote BIP 66 47:54 BIP 103 Proposal and Initial Reactions 49:57 SegWit Development and Implementation 01:05:39 Taproot's History, Details, and Benefits 01:11:09 Why Taproot Has No Hashed Addresses 01:16:55 Pieter's Thoughts on BitVM and other non-softfork dependent scaling solutions cc Robin Linus 🥖 01:18:27 Non-Soft Fork Scaling Solutions 01:23:03 Future Consensus Changes and Challenges 01:25:28 Bitcoin's Miner Centralization and Security Concerns (e.g. MEV) cc Matt Corallo 🟠 01:34:48 Miniscript: Simplifying Bitcoin Script? cc Rob Hamilton

Isabel Foxen Duke⚡️

43,894 views • 7 months ago

Bitcoin’s Next Civil War Is Already Here Casey Casey and Erin Redwing Erin Redwing dive deep into Paul Sztorc’s eCash Bitcoin fork and the return of the Bitcoin fork wars. The fork implements Drivechain through BIP 300 and BIP 301, allowing Bitcoin to support side chains for privacy, prediction markets, decentralized exchanges, assets, DNS, post-quantum cryptography, and more — without adding those features directly to Bitcoin Core. We break down how hashrate escrow and blind merge mining actually work, the seven proposed Drivechain side chains, the controversial redistribution of 500,000 of Satoshi’s coins, and the central question hanging over the entire proposal: can Bitcoin miners actually be trusted to make this work? TIMESTAMPS: 0:00 Intro 8:18 Fork Wars: Paul Sztorc's eCash Bitcoin Fork 11:17 What is Drivechain? BIP 300 & BIP 301 12:56 Satoshi Coin Redistribution & Drivechain Timeline 14:17 Side Chains: Bitcoin's White Whale 18:04 Blockstream's Liquid & Why Side Chains Fail 21:22 Lightning vs Side Chains 23:07 Hashrate Escrow Deep Dive: How BIP 300 Works 28:00 Blind Merge Mining & Core Untouched Soft Fork 32:28 The Seven Proposed Drivechain Side Chains 36:30 Who Validates the Side Chains? 40:40 Are Miners Stupid or is Drivechain Stupid? 44:00 Paul Sztorc's Integrity & Pathological Honesty 51:00 The Fork Wars: Luke vs Paul vs Michael 59:00 What Makes Bitcoin Bitcoin? 1:04:00 Should You Spend Your Bitcoin? Deflationary Psychology 1:13:00 The Future of Bitcoin & Sovereign Individuals
1:21:49

Bitcoin’s Next Civil War Is Already Here Casey Casey and Erin Redwing Erin Redwing dive deep into Paul Sztorc’s eCash Bitcoin fork and the return of the Bitcoin fork wars. The fork implements Drivechain through BIP 300 and BIP 301, allowing Bitcoin to support side chains for privacy, prediction markets, decentralized exchanges, assets, DNS, post-quantum cryptography, and more — without adding those features directly to Bitcoin Core. We break down how hashrate escrow and blind merge mining actually work, the seven proposed Drivechain side chains, the controversial redistribution of 500,000 of Satoshi’s coins, and the central question hanging over the entire proposal: can Bitcoin miners actually be trusted to make this work? TIMESTAMPS: 0:00 Intro 8:18 Fork Wars: Paul Sztorc's eCash Bitcoin Fork 11:17 What is Drivechain? BIP 300 & BIP 301 12:56 Satoshi Coin Redistribution & Drivechain Timeline 14:17 Side Chains: Bitcoin's White Whale 18:04 Blockstream's Liquid & Why Side Chains Fail 21:22 Lightning vs Side Chains 23:07 Hashrate Escrow Deep Dive: How BIP 300 Works 28:00 Blind Merge Mining & Core Untouched Soft Fork 32:28 The Seven Proposed Drivechain Side Chains 36:30 Who Validates the Side Chains? 40:40 Are Miners Stupid or is Drivechain Stupid? 44:00 Paul Sztorc's Integrity & Pathological Honesty 51:00 The Fork Wars: Luke vs Paul vs Michael 59:00 What Makes Bitcoin Bitcoin? 1:04:00 Should You Spend Your Bitcoin? Deflationary Psychology 1:13:00 The Future of Bitcoin & Sovereign Individuals

Hell Money

113,403 views • 18 days ago

$1M Bitcoin in 2027 Everyone thinks Michael Saylor and ETFs get us there. I think it’s Paul Sztorc and the eCash.com $BTC hard fork. I sat with Paul Sztorc who made me realise eCash could be one of the most important forks in bitcoins history, stimulating our greatest bullrun ever. The tldr is in August if you hold bitcoin you get the equivalent in eCash. Now eCash on its own merit is already interesting. It’s led by Paul Sztorc who has spent years campaigning to improve bitcoins mechanical utility. He’s a certified legit Bitcoin OG who wants to add functional layers on-top of Bitcoin to enable Bitcoin to be the rails for the broader world of commerce. He plans to achieve this with side chains that are sort of like L2s on Bitcoin. Imagine if Bitcoin had smart contracts and $btc was the currency for all apps in the world. 🤔so technically it’s already very compelling. You will get that for free just by owning Bitcoin. But that’s not all. Paul has figured out a way to finance new forks. I believe this will trigger a new season of fork innovations. Basically fork wars 2.0 only this time it’s based around experimentation and innovation instead of outright kill Bitcoin. Institutions have been all the craze recently but they have never been the source of crypto's biggest expansions. The people who built this industry were. The Cryptographers, the hackers, the builders and the cypherpunks. Everyone is focusing on Strategy selling Bitcoin, meanwhile the upcoming eCash hard fork from Paul Sztorc is being wildly underestimated. Technically, the idea of improving bitcoins mechanical utility is appealing but the event itself is also financially dramatic inducing a huge wealth effect for a whole new generation of Bitcoin holders and it may remind the market who actually drives innovation in this industry. Every major crypto boom began when a small group of weird, intelligent, highly-convicted people challenged the status quo and built something new. And while everyone thinks the next bull market comes from Wall Street, I think much more poetically it comes from the same place every other one did: The real Bitcoiners. Anyway, the interview is linked below. I highly recommend you watch it and I’ll be writing my thesis that goes over wealth effects, network effects, financial incentives, game theory and how this all spills over into a bitcoin and crypto bullrun like we’ve never seen before.
0:34

$1M Bitcoin in 2027 Everyone thinks Michael Saylor and ETFs get us there. I think it’s Paul Sztorc and the eCash.com $BTC hard fork. I sat with Paul Sztorc who made me realise eCash could be one of the most important forks in bitcoins history, stimulating our greatest bullrun ever. The tldr is in August if you hold bitcoin you get the equivalent in eCash. Now eCash on its own merit is already interesting. It’s led by Paul Sztorc who has spent years campaigning to improve bitcoins mechanical utility. He’s a certified legit Bitcoin OG who wants to add functional layers on-top of Bitcoin to enable Bitcoin to be the rails for the broader world of commerce. He plans to achieve this with side chains that are sort of like L2s on Bitcoin. Imagine if Bitcoin had smart contracts and $btc was the currency for all apps in the world. 🤔so technically it’s already very compelling. You will get that for free just by owning Bitcoin. But that’s not all. Paul has figured out a way to finance new forks. I believe this will trigger a new season of fork innovations. Basically fork wars 2.0 only this time it’s based around experimentation and innovation instead of outright kill Bitcoin. Institutions have been all the craze recently but they have never been the source of crypto's biggest expansions. The people who built this industry were. The Cryptographers, the hackers, the builders and the cypherpunks. Everyone is focusing on Strategy selling Bitcoin, meanwhile the upcoming eCash hard fork from Paul Sztorc is being wildly underestimated. Technically, the idea of improving bitcoins mechanical utility is appealing but the event itself is also financially dramatic inducing a huge wealth effect for a whole new generation of Bitcoin holders and it may remind the market who actually drives innovation in this industry. Every major crypto boom began when a small group of weird, intelligent, highly-convicted people challenged the status quo and built something new. And while everyone thinks the next bull market comes from Wall Street, I think much more poetically it comes from the same place every other one did: The real Bitcoiners. Anyway, the interview is linked below. I highly recommend you watch it and I’ll be writing my thesis that goes over wealth effects, network effects, financial incentives, game theory and how this all spills over into a bitcoin and crypto bullrun like we’ve never seen before.

Senator Mak🖖

130,752 views • 3 months ago

🎙The Future of Africa’s CBDC & Bitcoin Ep. 59 with Abubakar Nur Khalil on You’re The Voice | Podcast by Efrat Fenigson My guest today is Abubakar Nur Khalil, a Nigerian Bitcoin Core contributor, CEO of the Bitcoin venture fund Recursive Capital Recursive Capital, and one of only four board members of Btrust Btrust - a nonprofit supporting Bitcoin development in Africa. At just 25 years old, Abubakar is transforming the African Bitcoin ecosystem by training developers, advancing Bitcoin adoption, and supporting decentralized financial solutions. In this episode, we explore Nigeria’s CBDC rollout of the eNaira, why it failed, the cash shortages, and the growing Bitcoin adoption. Abubkar shares his journey from contributing to Bitcoin Core to leading Btrust's mission of decentralizing Bitcoin development in the Global South. He also shares about the challenges of scaling Bitcoin adoption in Africa, the revolutionary role of Bitcoin mining in electrifying rural communities, and the untapped potential of Bitcoin in empowering Africa’s youth and businesses. ► If you got value, please like, comment, share, follow and support my work. Thank you! (00:00) Coming Up… (00:57) Introduction to Abubakar (03:48) The Journey to Becoming a Board Member of Btrust (09:08) Btrust’s Vision & Support for African Bitcoin Developers (12:58) Being Young & Successful (15:48) The eNaira - Nigeria’s CBDC (21:58) Cash Shortages in Nigeria (25:58) eNaira’s Failure & Speeding up Bitcoin Adoption (32:41) The CNGN - Nigeria's Stablecoin Initiative (35:01) Africa's Economic Landscape and Bitcoin Mining (40:15) Corruption and Governance Challenges in Africa (42:32) How Common Struggles Unify Africa (44:32) Non-Smartphones Can Use The Lightning Network (46:53) Ethiopia's Energy and Bitcoin Mining Potential (48:20) Why Are Most Bitcoin Transactions in Africa B2B (50:25) Regulatory Developments for Bitcoin Exchanges in Nigeria (52:54) Promising Future Projects in Bitcoin (56:58) Message of Hope >>
58:30

🎙The Future of Africa’s CBDC & Bitcoin Ep. 59 with Abubakar Nur Khalil on You’re The Voice | Podcast by Efrat Fenigson My guest today is Abubakar Nur Khalil, a Nigerian Bitcoin Core contributor, CEO of the Bitcoin venture fund Recursive Capital Recursive Capital, and one of only four board members of Btrust Btrust - a nonprofit supporting Bitcoin development in Africa. At just 25 years old, Abubakar is transforming the African Bitcoin ecosystem by training developers, advancing Bitcoin adoption, and supporting decentralized financial solutions. In this episode, we explore Nigeria’s CBDC rollout of the eNaira, why it failed, the cash shortages, and the growing Bitcoin adoption. Abubkar shares his journey from contributing to Bitcoin Core to leading Btrust's mission of decentralizing Bitcoin development in the Global South. He also shares about the challenges of scaling Bitcoin adoption in Africa, the revolutionary role of Bitcoin mining in electrifying rural communities, and the untapped potential of Bitcoin in empowering Africa’s youth and businesses. ► If you got value, please like, comment, share, follow and support my work. Thank you! (00:00) Coming Up… (00:57) Introduction to Abubakar (03:48) The Journey to Becoming a Board Member of Btrust (09:08) Btrust’s Vision & Support for African Bitcoin Developers (12:58) Being Young & Successful (15:48) The eNaira - Nigeria’s CBDC (21:58) Cash Shortages in Nigeria (25:58) eNaira’s Failure & Speeding up Bitcoin Adoption (32:41) The CNGN - Nigeria's Stablecoin Initiative (35:01) Africa's Economic Landscape and Bitcoin Mining (40:15) Corruption and Governance Challenges in Africa (42:32) How Common Struggles Unify Africa (44:32) Non-Smartphones Can Use The Lightning Network (46:53) Ethiopia's Energy and Bitcoin Mining Potential (48:20) Why Are Most Bitcoin Transactions in Africa B2B (50:25) Regulatory Developments for Bitcoin Exchanges in Nigeria (52:54) Promising Future Projects in Bitcoin (56:58) Message of Hope >>

Efrat Fenigson

28,032 views • 1 year ago

BITCOIN RAILS #63: Bitcoin's threshold for trust-minimization—without a soft fork | with Sam Blackshear Sam Blackshear 🔗 YOUTUBE: 🌱 SPOTIFY: Some of the most impressive technical and commercial leaders in digital assets emerged from what insiders call the "Libra Mafia" — the team assembled by Meta to build Libra (later Diem). Though the project ultimately succumbed to regulatory pressure, it produced a generation of founders and engineers who went on to shape the industry, including Sam Blackshear (Sam Blackshear), a leading expert in blockchain programming languages and CTO of MystenLabs.sui In this episode of Bitcoin Rails, Sam joins me to discuss: - Why Mysten Labs has turned its focus toward Bitcoin + why Sam leans conservative on soft-fork changes to Bitcoin script - What makes a strong crypto programming language + why EVM is missing the mark - Why trust minimization remains the critical technical challenge standing between Bitcoin and broader DeFi adoption - Why Mysten Lab's new Hashi architecture may be the most trust-minimized architecture for Bitcoin "bridging" without a soft fork This episode of Bitcoin Rails is brought to you by: LayerTwo Labs LayerTwo Labs — developing research, software, and technologies for scaling Bitcoin via the integration of Drivechains (BIP 300/301) Hashi on Sui — a primitive for executing Bitcoin DeFi transactions, without having to trust a federated bridge or other centralized entity BitBox BitBox — an open-source Bitcoin-only hardware wallet, with smooth UX and no compromises on security. Check out Bitbox [dot] swiss and use code BITCOINRAILS to get a discount TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 — Intro 01:09 — Sam's Origin Story 04:40 — Building Move Inside Libra 10:18 — Why Sui Looks Like Bitcoin 15:55 — Libra Dies & Sui Is Born 23:06 — Quantum Resistance & Sui's Cryptography 28:24 — Bitcoin's Programmability Problem 34:39 — How Hashi Works 38:00 — Hashi's Trust Assumptions 53:54 — Why Nobody Else Could Build This 56:24 — The Future of Building on Bitcoin
58:05

BITCOIN RAILS #63: Bitcoin's threshold for trust-minimization—without a soft fork | with Sam Blackshear Sam Blackshear 🔗 YOUTUBE: 🌱 SPOTIFY: Some of the most impressive technical and commercial leaders in digital assets emerged from what insiders call the "Libra Mafia" — the team assembled by Meta to build Libra (later Diem). Though the project ultimately succumbed to regulatory pressure, it produced a generation of founders and engineers who went on to shape the industry, including Sam Blackshear (Sam Blackshear), a leading expert in blockchain programming languages and CTO of MystenLabs.sui In this episode of Bitcoin Rails, Sam joins me to discuss: - Why Mysten Labs has turned its focus toward Bitcoin + why Sam leans conservative on soft-fork changes to Bitcoin script - What makes a strong crypto programming language + why EVM is missing the mark - Why trust minimization remains the critical technical challenge standing between Bitcoin and broader DeFi adoption - Why Mysten Lab's new Hashi architecture may be the most trust-minimized architecture for Bitcoin "bridging" without a soft fork This episode of Bitcoin Rails is brought to you by: LayerTwo Labs LayerTwo Labs — developing research, software, and technologies for scaling Bitcoin via the integration of Drivechains (BIP 300/301) Hashi on Sui — a primitive for executing Bitcoin DeFi transactions, without having to trust a federated bridge or other centralized entity BitBox BitBox — an open-source Bitcoin-only hardware wallet, with smooth UX and no compromises on security. Check out Bitbox [dot] swiss and use code BITCOINRAILS to get a discount TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 — Intro 01:09 — Sam's Origin Story 04:40 — Building Move Inside Libra 10:18 — Why Sui Looks Like Bitcoin 15:55 — Libra Dies & Sui Is Born 23:06 — Quantum Resistance & Sui's Cryptography 28:24 — Bitcoin's Programmability Problem 34:39 — How Hashi Works 38:00 — Hashi's Trust Assumptions 53:54 — Why Nobody Else Could Build This 56:24 — The Future of Building on Bitcoin

Isabel Foxen Duke⚡️

34,558 views • 3 months ago

What if #AI became as decentralized as #Bitcoin? We sat down with our new friend 3700 from Bitcoin Virtual Machine to hear what their incredible team of anons are working on - "Truly Open AI." Full interview here:👇 1: What positive impact will Layer 2s have on Bitcoin? Layer 2s on Bitcoin open up opportunities for innovation, allowing developers to build dApps and smart contracts on top of Bitcoin, expanding its utility and use cases. By submitting transactions for final settlement on the Bitcoin network, Bitcoin Layer 2 networks claim to achieve the same (or close to) level of security and decentralization as the Bitcoin blockchain. Building a separate execution layer allows them the freedom to employ several technologies (such as rollups). Layer 2 can significantly improve Bitcoin's scalability by processing transactions off-chain, reducing congestion on the main blockchain. Overall, Layer 2s on Bitcoin have the potential to address some of Bitcoin's key limitations, making it more efficient, accessible, and versatile in the long run. 2: What does the ETF approval mean for Layer 2 on Bitcoin? The approval of ETF could potentially have several implications for Layer 2 on Bitcoin: Innovation and Development: With a growing interest in Bitcoin spurred by ETF approval, there could be a surge in research and development efforts focused on enhancing Layer 2. Developers and projects may be incentivized to create new and improved Layer 2 protocols to meet the evolving needs of the expanding Bitcoin ecosystem. An ETF approval could boost mainstream Bitcoin adoption and liquidity. This influx of users may also drive interest in Layer 2 on Bitcoin as a means to enhance the scalability and functionality of Bitcoin. 3: What are the primary challenges facing L2s on Bitcoin? The interoperability of different Layer 2s and their compatibility with Bitcoin's main blockchain can be a challenge. Ensuring seamless interaction between various Layer 2 networks and the Bitcoin blockchain is essential for a cohesive and efficient ecosystem. Some Layer 2s may introduce centralization risks if they rely heavily on centralized entities or trusted intermediaries. Maintaining decentralization and censorship resistance, which are core tenets of Bitcoin, while scaling with Layer 2s is a challenge. 4: What aspects of Layer 2 solutions for Bitcoin are you most enthusiastic about? AI represents one of the cornerstones of our modern era. However, achieving a decentralized AI infrastructure, owned and managed by users, has posed significant challenges. The primary obstacle has been the limited capacity to store and execute AI models due to size and computational limitations. To address this challenge, we propose a new blockchain architecture enabling developers to deploy their own Bitcoin Layer 2 solutions tailored specifically for AI tasks, called Truly Open AI. These Layer 2 blockchains are optimized to handle computationally intensive tasks, such as matrix multiplication, directly on-chain. These Bitcoin Layer 2 solutions offer exceptional throughput, minimal latency, and cost-effectiveness. AI dApps are programmed as Solidity smart contracts, ensuring they operate precisely as intended, free from interference or manipulation. Our BVM AI Contracts Library simplifies the integration of neural networks into dApps, empowering developers to embed AI seamlessly. In summary, I'm particularly enthusiastic about the potential of Layer 2 solutions for Bitcoin to revolutionize decentralized AI by providing scalability, security, and accessibility. 5: How is your Layer 2 different from others being built? BVM distinguishes itself as a Modular infrastructure that empowers thousands of distinct Bitcoin Layer 2 networks, spanning Gaming, DeFi, Social, and AI applications. We're continuously enriching the BVM Module Store with new modules to enhance its capabilities. With each new module, builders gain access to a wider array of tools to explore different use cases on the Bitcoin network. Recent additions include the Filecoin module for affordable storage and the AI Contracts Library for constructing AI-powered Bitcoin Layer 2 chains. We're also gearing up to release a ZK roll-up module in the coming weeks to offer an alternative to the standard optimistic roll-up. We aim to simplify the process of launching a Bitcoin Layer 2 network customized to specific requirements. Think of it as a SaaS offering with predefined best practices. Whether it's a DeFi Bitcoin Layer 2 or a GameFi Bitcoin Layer 2, we provide default solutions tailored to each use case. We're dedicated to expanding the BVM ecosystem by incentivizing more builders to join the Bitcoin network. Through various programs and grants, we support builders in covering their operational costs for Bitcoin Layer 2. Additionally, we offer rewards akin to 'L2 mining' to those who contribute to expanding the user base and total value locked on the network. In summary, BVM stands out with its modular infrastructure, tailored solutions, and efforts to grow the Bitcoin ecosystem.
1:16

What if #AI became as decentralized as #Bitcoin? We sat down with our new friend 3700 from Bitcoin Virtual Machine to hear what their incredible team of anons are working on - "Truly Open AI." Full interview here:👇 1: What positive impact will Layer 2s have on Bitcoin? Layer 2s on Bitcoin open up opportunities for innovation, allowing developers to build dApps and smart contracts on top of Bitcoin, expanding its utility and use cases. By submitting transactions for final settlement on the Bitcoin network, Bitcoin Layer 2 networks claim to achieve the same (or close to) level of security and decentralization as the Bitcoin blockchain. Building a separate execution layer allows them the freedom to employ several technologies (such as rollups). Layer 2 can significantly improve Bitcoin's scalability by processing transactions off-chain, reducing congestion on the main blockchain. Overall, Layer 2s on Bitcoin have the potential to address some of Bitcoin's key limitations, making it more efficient, accessible, and versatile in the long run. 2: What does the ETF approval mean for Layer 2 on Bitcoin? The approval of ETF could potentially have several implications for Layer 2 on Bitcoin: Innovation and Development: With a growing interest in Bitcoin spurred by ETF approval, there could be a surge in research and development efforts focused on enhancing Layer 2. Developers and projects may be incentivized to create new and improved Layer 2 protocols to meet the evolving needs of the expanding Bitcoin ecosystem. An ETF approval could boost mainstream Bitcoin adoption and liquidity. This influx of users may also drive interest in Layer 2 on Bitcoin as a means to enhance the scalability and functionality of Bitcoin. 3: What are the primary challenges facing L2s on Bitcoin? The interoperability of different Layer 2s and their compatibility with Bitcoin's main blockchain can be a challenge. Ensuring seamless interaction between various Layer 2 networks and the Bitcoin blockchain is essential for a cohesive and efficient ecosystem. Some Layer 2s may introduce centralization risks if they rely heavily on centralized entities or trusted intermediaries. Maintaining decentralization and censorship resistance, which are core tenets of Bitcoin, while scaling with Layer 2s is a challenge. 4: What aspects of Layer 2 solutions for Bitcoin are you most enthusiastic about? AI represents one of the cornerstones of our modern era. However, achieving a decentralized AI infrastructure, owned and managed by users, has posed significant challenges. The primary obstacle has been the limited capacity to store and execute AI models due to size and computational limitations. To address this challenge, we propose a new blockchain architecture enabling developers to deploy their own Bitcoin Layer 2 solutions tailored specifically for AI tasks, called Truly Open AI. These Layer 2 blockchains are optimized to handle computationally intensive tasks, such as matrix multiplication, directly on-chain. These Bitcoin Layer 2 solutions offer exceptional throughput, minimal latency, and cost-effectiveness. AI dApps are programmed as Solidity smart contracts, ensuring they operate precisely as intended, free from interference or manipulation. Our BVM AI Contracts Library simplifies the integration of neural networks into dApps, empowering developers to embed AI seamlessly. In summary, I'm particularly enthusiastic about the potential of Layer 2 solutions for Bitcoin to revolutionize decentralized AI by providing scalability, security, and accessibility. 5: How is your Layer 2 different from others being built? BVM distinguishes itself as a Modular infrastructure that empowers thousands of distinct Bitcoin Layer 2 networks, spanning Gaming, DeFi, Social, and AI applications. We're continuously enriching the BVM Module Store with new modules to enhance its capabilities. With each new module, builders gain access to a wider array of tools to explore different use cases on the Bitcoin network. Recent additions include the Filecoin module for affordable storage and the AI Contracts Library for constructing AI-powered Bitcoin Layer 2 chains. We're also gearing up to release a ZK roll-up module in the coming weeks to offer an alternative to the standard optimistic roll-up. We aim to simplify the process of launching a Bitcoin Layer 2 network customized to specific requirements. Think of it as a SaaS offering with predefined best practices. Whether it's a DeFi Bitcoin Layer 2 or a GameFi Bitcoin Layer 2, we provide default solutions tailored to each use case. We're dedicated to expanding the BVM ecosystem by incentivizing more builders to join the Bitcoin network. Through various programs and grants, we support builders in covering their operational costs for Bitcoin Layer 2. Additionally, we offer rewards akin to 'L2 mining' to those who contribute to expanding the user base and total value locked on the network. In summary, BVM stands out with its modular infrastructure, tailored solutions, and efforts to grow the Bitcoin ecosystem.

Supra

83,548 views • 2 years ago

🎙️Architecting the Monetary Endgame Ep. 97 with allen farrington My guest today is Allen Farrington, writer, investor, and co-founder of Axiom, a Bitcoin-focused venture capital firm backing companies that use Bitcoin as real infrastructure rather than speculation. Allen co-authored “Bitcoin is Venice” and “Only the Strong Survive” and draws on a background in math, philosophy, Austrian economics, and long-term equity investing to explain why Bitcoin is both a technological breakthrough and a venture opportunity hiding in plain sight. In this episode, he shares why he believes the most valuable startups will use Bitcoin as invisible plumbing for payments, energy, and financial services rather than marketing themselves as “Bitcoin companies.” We explore why current stablecoin systems break under real demand, how Lightning and Taproot Assets enable issuer competition and scalable payments, and why the long arc ends with e-cash and Bitcoin-native money. Allen frames Axiom’s edge as “temporal arbitrage”: investing early where technical understanding and adoption are low, anticipating that in a decade the market will recognize the value created by Bitcoin-based infrastructure. ► If you got value, please like, comment, share, follow and support my work. Thank you! 00:00 - Coming Up 01:12 - Introduction to Allen 03:20 - Discovering Bitcoin & Career Trajectory 12:03 - Ad Break - Trezor & BitVault 15:22 - Investment Philosophy & Lightning as Inspiration 17:52 - Company and Investment Selection for Axiom VC 30:12 - Stablecoins & Regulations 37:32 - Why Most Stablecoin Systems Fail At Scale? 44:50 - The Importance of Stablecoin Issuers 51:16 - Stablecoins on Lightning & Taproot Assets: A New Approach 1:01:23 - The Future of Digital Money: E-Cash 1:05:47 - Steps to Migrate From Fiat To Bitcoin 1:10:28 - Companies to Watch in the Bitcoin & Lightning Space 1:16:43 - Allen Loves What He Does & Why He Does It >>
1:24:35

🎙️Architecting the Monetary Endgame Ep. 97 with allen farrington My guest today is Allen Farrington, writer, investor, and co-founder of Axiom, a Bitcoin-focused venture capital firm backing companies that use Bitcoin as real infrastructure rather than speculation. Allen co-authored “Bitcoin is Venice” and “Only the Strong Survive” and draws on a background in math, philosophy, Austrian economics, and long-term equity investing to explain why Bitcoin is both a technological breakthrough and a venture opportunity hiding in plain sight. In this episode, he shares why he believes the most valuable startups will use Bitcoin as invisible plumbing for payments, energy, and financial services rather than marketing themselves as “Bitcoin companies.” We explore why current stablecoin systems break under real demand, how Lightning and Taproot Assets enable issuer competition and scalable payments, and why the long arc ends with e-cash and Bitcoin-native money. Allen frames Axiom’s edge as “temporal arbitrage”: investing early where technical understanding and adoption are low, anticipating that in a decade the market will recognize the value created by Bitcoin-based infrastructure. ► If you got value, please like, comment, share, follow and support my work. Thank you! 00:00 - Coming Up 01:12 - Introduction to Allen 03:20 - Discovering Bitcoin & Career Trajectory 12:03 - Ad Break - Trezor & BitVault 15:22 - Investment Philosophy & Lightning as Inspiration 17:52 - Company and Investment Selection for Axiom VC 30:12 - Stablecoins & Regulations 37:32 - Why Most Stablecoin Systems Fail At Scale? 44:50 - The Importance of Stablecoin Issuers 51:16 - Stablecoins on Lightning & Taproot Assets: A New Approach 1:01:23 - The Future of Digital Money: E-Cash 1:05:47 - Steps to Migrate From Fiat To Bitcoin 1:10:28 - Companies to Watch in the Bitcoin & Lightning Space 1:16:43 - Allen Loves What He Does & Why He Does It >>

Efrat Fenigson

75,862 views • 11 months ago

🎙️Living 100% on Bitcoin, Nostr & Nature Ep. 140 on Paul Keating Paul Keating is building freedom tech with primal, a Nostr client that puts digital sovereignty back in users' hands. Based in Costa Rica, Paul lives entirely on a Bitcoin standard as part of Bitcoin Jungle, one of the most vibrant circular Bitcoin economies in the world. A surfer, new father, and tireless advocate for freedom-first technology, Paul joined me at Bitcoin 2026 in Las Vegas for a conversation that has been a long time coming. We covered what a truly sovereign life looks like day to day, how Bitcoin and Nostr function as nature's response to broken money and broken social media, the open protocol future Primal is building toward, and the upcoming Bitcoin Jungle documentary - Hummingbird. → Please like, comment, share & follow — to help me beat the suppressing algo's. Thank you! 00:00 - Coming Up... 01:23 - Introduction to Paul Keating 03:18 - Life in Bitcoin Jungle: Costa Rica, Family & Surfing 06:32 - Building a Bitcoin Circular Economy 10:14 - Ad-Break: Ledn & Trezor 11:54 - Bitcoin Jungle App: Lightning, Off-Ramps & Self-Custody 14:31 - Nostr: Why Should You Care? 18:06 - Inside Primal: Vision, Features & the Open Protocol 22:30 - Censorship Is Structural: Platforms, Telegram & Efrat's Story 27:29 - Digital Health: Balancing Analog Life with Digital Tech 33:31 - Ad-Break: Abundant Mines 34:52 - Sovereign Living: Community & Network States 38:23 - Hummingbird: The Bitcoin Jungle Documentary
41:42

🎙️Living 100% on Bitcoin, Nostr & Nature Ep. 140 on Paul Keating Paul Keating is building freedom tech with primal, a Nostr client that puts digital sovereignty back in users' hands. Based in Costa Rica, Paul lives entirely on a Bitcoin standard as part of Bitcoin Jungle, one of the most vibrant circular Bitcoin economies in the world. A surfer, new father, and tireless advocate for freedom-first technology, Paul joined me at Bitcoin 2026 in Las Vegas for a conversation that has been a long time coming. We covered what a truly sovereign life looks like day to day, how Bitcoin and Nostr function as nature's response to broken money and broken social media, the open protocol future Primal is building toward, and the upcoming Bitcoin Jungle documentary - Hummingbird. → Please like, comment, share & follow — to help me beat the suppressing algo's. Thank you! 00:00 - Coming Up... 01:23 - Introduction to Paul Keating 03:18 - Life in Bitcoin Jungle: Costa Rica, Family & Surfing 06:32 - Building a Bitcoin Circular Economy 10:14 - Ad-Break: Ledn & Trezor 11:54 - Bitcoin Jungle App: Lightning, Off-Ramps & Self-Custody 14:31 - Nostr: Why Should You Care? 18:06 - Inside Primal: Vision, Features & the Open Protocol 22:30 - Censorship Is Structural: Platforms, Telegram & Efrat's Story 27:29 - Digital Health: Balancing Analog Life with Digital Tech 33:31 - Ad-Break: Abundant Mines 34:52 - Sovereign Living: Community & Network States 38:23 - Hummingbird: The Bitcoin Jungle Documentary

Efrat Fenigson

11,188 views • 3 months ago

BITCOIN RAILS #43: A HISTORY OF “SPAM” on BITCOIN | with Peter Todd 🔗 YOUTUBE: 🌿 SPOTIFY: “You cannot prevent arbitrary data from being published in Bitcoin transactions. Even at the consensus level…It’s mathematically impossible.” Legendary Bitcoin contributor since 2009 and self-described "weirdo with a fine arts degree," Peter Todd joins me to unpack the endless wars over Bitcoin's "true purpose," his pioneering work putting "spam" on the blockchain, and why he believes attempts to filter transactions are just “silly.” In this episode, we get deep into the history of using Bitcoin for data storage - which goes back, at least, to the development of Namecoin in 2011. Relatedly, we cover the history and long-fought governance battles around OP_RETURN, relay policy, and our community's evolving definitions of "arbitrary data. Suffice it to say, the Filter Wars of 2024/25 are not new... they are simply one battle in a decade+ war we unpack in detail in this context-rich episode of Bitcoin Rails. In more detail, this episode covers: - The development of Open Time Stamps + Bitcoin's use in validating election data and beyond. - OPRETURN battles of the early days... and how its use has evolved over the past decade. - Why Bitcoin Core "should not try to censor transactions" and the "performance art project" (Libre Relay) that shows why. - Bitcoin as a "replicated database" and why blockchains may legitimately be useful outside of sound money. - Why preventing arbitrary data on Bitcoin is "mathematically impossible" ...and trying to stop it is only distracting us from "more important" efforts, like the Great Consensus Cleanup Antoine Poinsot. This episode of Bitcoin Rails is powered by: - Best In Slot (Best in Slot | BRC2.0 🧑‍🍳) — the leading API for Ordinals and BRC-20 data aggregation and indexing. - Spark (Lightspark) — a statechains implementation advancing Bitcoin-powered payments. - Citrea (Citrea | Mainnet Live 🍊🍋) — the leading Bitcoin rollup technology and BitVM alliance contributor. Timestamps: 00:00 Intro 01:19 Bitcoin Early Days 03:44 OpenTimestamps Project 12:22 Governance and Bitcoin Protocol Debates 26:36 The Blockchain Use Case Argument 35:46 Transaction Version Numbers and Standardization 38:30 Preventing Exploits and DDoS Attacks 40:10 Relay Policies and Economic Decisions 42:00 The Taproot Annex and OP_RETURN 45:07 Libre Relay 01:01:18 Future of Bitcoin and Soft Fork Proposals
1:13:14

BITCOIN RAILS #43: A HISTORY OF “SPAM” on BITCOIN | with Peter Todd 🔗 YOUTUBE: 🌿 SPOTIFY: “You cannot prevent arbitrary data from being published in Bitcoin transactions. Even at the consensus level…It’s mathematically impossible.” Legendary Bitcoin contributor since 2009 and self-described "weirdo with a fine arts degree," Peter Todd joins me to unpack the endless wars over Bitcoin's "true purpose," his pioneering work putting "spam" on the blockchain, and why he believes attempts to filter transactions are just “silly.” In this episode, we get deep into the history of using Bitcoin for data storage - which goes back, at least, to the development of Namecoin in 2011. Relatedly, we cover the history and long-fought governance battles around OP_RETURN, relay policy, and our community's evolving definitions of "arbitrary data. Suffice it to say, the Filter Wars of 2024/25 are not new... they are simply one battle in a decade+ war we unpack in detail in this context-rich episode of Bitcoin Rails. In more detail, this episode covers: - The development of Open Time Stamps + Bitcoin's use in validating election data and beyond. - OPRETURN battles of the early days... and how its use has evolved over the past decade. - Why Bitcoin Core "should not try to censor transactions" and the "performance art project" (Libre Relay) that shows why. - Bitcoin as a "replicated database" and why blockchains may legitimately be useful outside of sound money. - Why preventing arbitrary data on Bitcoin is "mathematically impossible" ...and trying to stop it is only distracting us from "more important" efforts, like the Great Consensus Cleanup Antoine Poinsot. This episode of Bitcoin Rails is powered by: - Best In Slot (Best in Slot | BRC2.0 🧑‍🍳) — the leading API for Ordinals and BRC-20 data aggregation and indexing. - Spark (Lightspark) — a statechains implementation advancing Bitcoin-powered payments. - Citrea (Citrea | Mainnet Live 🍊🍋) — the leading Bitcoin rollup technology and BitVM alliance contributor. Timestamps: 00:00 Intro 01:19 Bitcoin Early Days 03:44 OpenTimestamps Project 12:22 Governance and Bitcoin Protocol Debates 26:36 The Blockchain Use Case Argument 35:46 Transaction Version Numbers and Standardization 38:30 Preventing Exploits and DDoS Attacks 40:10 Relay Policies and Economic Decisions 42:00 The Taproot Annex and OP_RETURN 45:07 Libre Relay 01:01:18 Future of Bitcoin and Soft Fork Proposals

Isabel Foxen Duke⚡️

10,768 views • 9 months ago

BITCOIN RAILS #61: QUANTUM CRYPTOGRAPHY FOR BITCOIN | with Dan Boneh Dan Boneh 🔗 YOUTUBE: 🌿 SPOTIFY: One of the most prolific and influential cryptographers in the world, it’s difficult to fully quantify the impact that Dan Boneh has had on Bitcoin and digital assets more broadly. Through both his own research and his mentorship of some of the space’s most important contributors — e.g. Andrew Poelstra, Benedikt Bünz ☕️, and Robin Linus — few people have done more to shape the cryptographic foundations underlying modern blockchains and digital finance. More recently, Dan co-authored Google's widely discussed paper, “Securing Elliptic Curve Cryptocurrencies against Quantum Vulnerabilities,” which reduced prior estimates of the resources required to run Shor’s algorithm against the elliptic-curve cryptography used by Bitcoin. The paper reignited debate around quantum computing timelines and the long-term security assumptions behind modern cryptocurrencies. In this episode of Bitcoin Rails, Dan and I discuss the current state of quantum computing, its potential implications for Bitcoin, and how he believes the Bitcoin community should think about preparing for a post-quantum future over the coming decade and beyond. And yes, Dan shares his take on the “when quantum” question in the interview, among other key perspectives. This episode of Bitcoin Rails is brought to you by my NEW sponsors: LayerTwo Labs LayerTwo Labs — developing research, software, and technologies for scaling Bitcoin via the integration of Drivechains (BIP 300/301) Hashi on Sui — a primitive for executing Bitcoin Defi transactions, without having to trust a federated bridge or other centralized entity BitBox BitBox — an open-source Bitcoin-only hardware wallet, with smooth UX and no compromises on security. Check out Bitbox [dot] swiss and use code BITCOINRAILS to get a discount TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 — Intro and Dan’s history with cryptography and Bitcoin 11:44 — Shor's algorithm: how a 1994 paper became cryptography's most important threat 16:39 — Building a quantum computer: superconducting qubits vs neutral atoms 25:37 — When should we start worrying about quantum computers? The timeline debate 31:51 — Have we already reached quantum computing's “ahá” moment? 39:09 — Inside the Google paper: how Shor's algorithm was optimized 49:57 — The Bitcoin mempool attack and the 10-minute window 59:21 — Mitigation: what should Bitcoin do to prepare for quantum? 1:11:54 — Hash-based vs lattice-based signatures: Dan's case for lattice 1:23:15 — ZK proofs, BIP361, and what to do with Satoshi's coins 1:31:52 — Encrypted mempools and MEV 1:38:29 — Why Bitcoin will survive quantum and Dan's message to Bitcoin builders
1:44:02

BITCOIN RAILS #61: QUANTUM CRYPTOGRAPHY FOR BITCOIN | with Dan Boneh Dan Boneh 🔗 YOUTUBE: 🌿 SPOTIFY: One of the most prolific and influential cryptographers in the world, it’s difficult to fully quantify the impact that Dan Boneh has had on Bitcoin and digital assets more broadly. Through both his own research and his mentorship of some of the space’s most important contributors — e.g. Andrew Poelstra, Benedikt Bünz ☕️, and Robin Linus — few people have done more to shape the cryptographic foundations underlying modern blockchains and digital finance. More recently, Dan co-authored Google's widely discussed paper, “Securing Elliptic Curve Cryptocurrencies against Quantum Vulnerabilities,” which reduced prior estimates of the resources required to run Shor’s algorithm against the elliptic-curve cryptography used by Bitcoin. The paper reignited debate around quantum computing timelines and the long-term security assumptions behind modern cryptocurrencies. In this episode of Bitcoin Rails, Dan and I discuss the current state of quantum computing, its potential implications for Bitcoin, and how he believes the Bitcoin community should think about preparing for a post-quantum future over the coming decade and beyond. And yes, Dan shares his take on the “when quantum” question in the interview, among other key perspectives. This episode of Bitcoin Rails is brought to you by my NEW sponsors: LayerTwo Labs LayerTwo Labs — developing research, software, and technologies for scaling Bitcoin via the integration of Drivechains (BIP 300/301) Hashi on Sui — a primitive for executing Bitcoin Defi transactions, without having to trust a federated bridge or other centralized entity BitBox BitBox — an open-source Bitcoin-only hardware wallet, with smooth UX and no compromises on security. Check out Bitbox [dot] swiss and use code BITCOINRAILS to get a discount TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 — Intro and Dan’s history with cryptography and Bitcoin 11:44 — Shor's algorithm: how a 1994 paper became cryptography's most important threat 16:39 — Building a quantum computer: superconducting qubits vs neutral atoms 25:37 — When should we start worrying about quantum computers? The timeline debate 31:51 — Have we already reached quantum computing's “ahá” moment? 39:09 — Inside the Google paper: how Shor's algorithm was optimized 49:57 — The Bitcoin mempool attack and the 10-minute window 59:21 — Mitigation: what should Bitcoin do to prepare for quantum? 1:11:54 — Hash-based vs lattice-based signatures: Dan's case for lattice 1:23:15 — ZK proofs, BIP361, and what to do with Satoshi's coins 1:31:52 — Encrypted mempools and MEV 1:38:29 — Why Bitcoin will survive quantum and Dan's message to Bitcoin builders

Isabel Foxen Duke⚡️

114,934 views • 3 months ago