Bitcoin Takeover Podcast

Michael Tidwell is the organizer of Tabconf, the longest running Bitcoin technical conference which takes place every year in Atlanta. In this episode, we talk about Bitcoin drama & use a fun roulette game to figure out who's guilty of it. Time stamps: 00:01:09 - Welcome and episode gimmick intro 00:01:30 - Sponsors shoutout 00:01:36 - Bitcoin drama discussion starts 00:03:38 - Bitcoin Core vs Knots debate 00:04:28 - Wheel spin: Blame the plebs 00:06:52 - Egg pick: Solution is "use tabs" 00:07:56 - Adam Back's "use tabs" context from 2017 00:09:09 - Paul Sztorc's role and personality 00:10:52 - Defining "pleb" in Bitcoin culture 00:13:42 - Hodlonaut story and Lightning Torch 00:16:32 - Roger Ver interview drama 00:18:43 - Hijacking Bitcoin book discussion 00:22:58 - Layer 2 Labs sponsor plug and drivechains 00:25:14 - Citrea ZK rollup explanation 00:27:48 - Liquid federation vs true sidechains 00:32:39 - Core vs Knots diffs and risks 00:33:52 - Peter Todd's OP_RETURN proposal 00:34:56 - CSAM fears and cultural debates 00:38:05 - Illicit content already on chain 00:40:54 - Multiple Bitcoin implementations history 00:44:03 - Libbitcoin rewrite and optimizations 00:44:37 - Bitcoin Cash fork and implementations 00:46:42 - Potential hard fork predictions 01:46:05 - MEV in Bitcoin via game example 01:47:57 - Drivechains delay: Blame the spooks 01:50:27 - Solution: Hard fork 01:51:59 - Drivechains on Litecoin pros/cons 01:55:01 - Litecoin as testbed for Bitcoin tech 01:57:59 - Stablecoins on Bitcoin layers 02:00:16 - Lightning Network limitations meme 02:01:35 - Lightning critique and distractions 02:04:49 - Lightning wheel spin: Blame Jack Dorsey 02:07:34 - Solution: Listen to Bitcoin Takeover 02:08:28 - Too many Bitcoin conferences issue 02:10:45 - Early Bitcoin conferences like San Jose 2013 02:13:00 - Craig Wright blame: Roger Ver 02:17:08 - Solution: Sell all your Bitcoin 02:18:24 - Reasons to sell all Bitcoin 02:19:47 - BSV community and Craig Wright claims 02:23:28 - Mental health in Bitcoin and seeking clarity 02:27:23 - Bitcoin's robustness to issues 02:31:26 - Advice for newcomers on understanding Bitcoin 02:32:41 - TabConf plug and history books 02:35:05 - Fortune-telling wrap-up and farewell

Yonatan Sompolinsky is an academic in the field of computer science, best known for his work on the GHOST protocol (Greedy Heaviest Observed Subtree, which was cited in the Ethereum whitepaper) and the way he applied his research to create Kaspa. In this episode, we talk about scaling Proof of Work and why Kaspa might be a worthy contender to process global payments. –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Time stamps: 00:01:22 - Debunking rumors: Why some think Yonatan is Satoshi Nakamoto 00:02:52 - Candidates for Satoshi: Charles Hoskinson, Charlie Lee, Zooko, and Alex Chepurnoy 00:03:41 - Alex Chepurnoy as a Satoshi-like figure 00:04:07 - Kaspa overview: DAG structure, no orphaned blocks, generalization of Bitcoin 00:04:55 - Similarities between Kaspa and Bitcoin fundamentals 00:06:12 - Why Kaspa couldn't be built directly on Bitcoin 00:08:05 - Kaspa as generalization of Nakamoto consensus 00:11:55 - Origins of GHOST protocol and early DAG concepts for Bitcoin scaling 00:13:16 - Academic motivation for GHOST and transitioning to computer science 00:13:50 - Turtle pet named Bitcoin 00:15:22 - Increasing block rate in Bitcoin and GHOST protocol 00:16:57 - Meeting Gregory Maxwell and discovering GHOST flaws 00:20:00 - Yonatan's views on drivechains and Bitcoin maximalism 00:20:36 - Defining Bitcoin maximalism: Capital B vs lowercase b 00:23:18 - Satoshi's support for Namecoin and merged mining 00:24:12 - Bitcoin culture in 2013-2018: Opposing other functionalities 00:26:01 - Vitalik's 2014 article on Bitcoin maximalism 00:26:13 - Andrew Poelstra's opposition to other assets on Bitcoin 00:26:38 - Bitcoin culture: Distaste for DeFi, criticism of Ethereum as a scam 00:28:03 - Bitcoin Cash developments: Cash tokens, cash fusion, contracts 00:28:39 - Rejection of Ethereum in Bitcoin circles 00:30:18 - Ethereum's successful PoS transition despite critics 00:35:04 - Ethereum's innovation: From Plasma to ZK rollups, nurturing development 00:37:04 - Stacks protocol and criticism from Luke Dashjr 00:39:02 - Bitcoin culture justifying technical limitations 00:41:01 - Declining Bitcoin adoption as money, rise of altcoins for payments 00:43:02 - Kaspa's aspirations: Merging sound money with DeFi, beyond just payments 00:43:56 - Possibility of tokenized Bitcoin on Kaspa 00:46:30 - Native currency advantage and friction in bridges 00:48:49 - WBTC on Ethereum scale vs Bitcoin L2s 00:53:33 - Quotes: Richard Dawkins on atheism, Milton Friedman on Yap Island money 00:55:44 - Story of Kaspa's messy fair launch in 2021 01:14:08 - Tech demo of Kaspa wallet experience 01:28:45 - Kaspa confirmation times & transaction fees 01:43:26 - GHOST DAG visualizer 01:44:10 - Mining Kaspa 01:55:48 - Data pruning in Kaspa, DAG vs MimbleWimble 02:01:40 - Grin & the fairest launch 02:12:21 - Zcash scaling & ZKP OP code in Kaspa 02:19:50 - Jameson Lopp, cold storage & self custody elitism 02:35:08 - Social recovery 02:41:00 - Amir Taaki, DarkFi & DAO 02:53:10 - Nick Szabo's God Protocols 03:00:00 - Layer twos on Kaspa for DeFi 03:13:09 - How Kaspa's DeFi will resemble Solana 03:24:03 - Centralized exchanges vs DeFi 03:32:05 - The importance of community projects 03:37:00 - DAG KNIGHT and its resilience 03:51:00 - DAG KNIGHT tradeoffs 03:58:18 - Blockchain vs DAG, the bottleneck for Kaspa 04:03:00 - 100 blocks per second? 04:11:43 - Question from Quai's Dr. K 04:17:03 - Doesn't Kaspa require super fast internet? 04:23:10 - Are ASIC miners desirable? 04:33:53 - Why Proof of Work matters 04:35:55 - A short history of Bitcoin mining 04:44:00 - DAG's sequencing 04:49:09 - Phantom GHOST DAG 04:52:47 - Why Kaspa had high inflation initially 04:55:10 - Selfish mining 05:03:00 - K Heavy Hash & other community questions 06:33:20 - Latency settings in DAG KNIGHT for security 06:36:52 - Aviv Zohar's involvement in Kaspa research 06:38:07 - World priced in Kaspa after hyperinflation 06:39:51 - Kaspa's fate intertwined with crypto 06:40:29 - Kaspa contracts vs Solana, why better for banks 06:42:53 - Cohesive developer experience in Kaspa like Solana 06:45:22 - Incorporating ZK design in Kaspa smart contracts 06:47:22 - Heroes: Garry Kasparov 06:48:12 - Shift in attitude from academics like Hoskinson, Buterin, Back 06:53:07 - Adam Back's criticism of Kaspa 06:55:57 - Michael Jordan and LeBron analogy for Bitcoiners' mindset 06:58:02 - Can Kaspa flip Bitcoin in market cap 07:00:34 - Gold and USD market cap comparison 07:06:06 - Collaboration with Kai team 07:10:37 - Community improvement: More context on crypto 07:13:43 - Theoretical maximum TPS for Kaspa 07:16:05 - Full ZK on L1 improvements 07:17:45 - Atomic composability and logic zones in Kaspa 07:23:12 - Sparkle and monolithic UX feel 07:26:00 - Wrapping up: Beating podcast length record, final thoughts on Bitcoin and Kaspa 07:27:31 - Why Yonatan called a scammer despite explanations 07:32:29 - Luke Dashjr's views and disconnect 07:33:01 - Hope for Bitcoin scaling and revolution

Cory Klippsten is the CEO of Swan Bitcoin and has a long history in both traditional finance and the Bitcoin space. In this two-part episode, he talks about why Bitcoin is winning and how the culture around it has changed.

Karl Kreder, better known as Dr. K, is best known in the space for researching the use of merged-mined subnets to scale Proof of Work in 2018 – a concept which led to the launch of the Quai Network, which introduced the Proof of Entropy Minima (PoEM) consensus for high transaction throughput within a decentralized environment. Today, we talk about his views on Bitcoin, why Proof of Work is still relevant in a world that's converging towards the more convenient Proof of Stake, and how the Quai Network works. Time stamps: 00:00 Intro & Welcome 00:03:00 Discussion Length Challenge 00:04:00 Dr. K's Bitcoin Background 00:06:00 Wallet Security & Lattice1 00:08:00 Scaling PoW Networks 00:11:00 PoW vs PoS Debate 00:13:00 Fair Launch & Distribution Issues 00:15:00 Quai Launch & Hash Rate 00:17:00 GPU Mining & ProgPow 00:20:00 ASIC Manufacturers 00:23:00 NiceHash & AI Integration 00:26:00 Quai Network Inspiration 00:29:00 Electronic Cash Necessity 00:32:00 Quai Scale to Replace Visa 00:34:00 Decentralization & No Roadmap 00:38:00 LayerTwo Labs Ad & DriveChains 00:40:00 Hierarchy for Validation 00:42:00 Payment Platforms Limits 00:44:00 Scale Beyond Current L1s 00:46:00 Monetary History & Gold 00:50:00 Self-Custody Challenges 00:52:00 Kaspa Differences & DAG 00:54:00 Bitcoin Love & Improvements 00:56:00 BSV Technical Limits 00:58:00 Consensus as Limit 01:00:00 Wolfram Physics Project 01:02:00 Scale Analogy & Consensus 01:04:00 Quai Node Hardware 01:06:00 Systemically Important Nodes 01:08:00 Bitcoin Privacy Issues 01:11:00 CoinJoin & Deniability 01:13:00 Good vs Bad Nodes 01:15:00 Economic Surplus Incentives 01:16:00 Bitcoin.com News Ad 01:19:00 Government as Enemy 01:21:00 Digital Paths & Freedom 01:23:00 Bitcoin as Linux & Tribalism 01:25:00 Legit Coins Assessment 01:26:00 EVM Compatibility Reasons 01:34:00 Why Choose EVM 01:35:00 Programming Languages 01:37:00 Simplicity Language 01:38:00 EVM as Standard 01:40:00 Bitcoin Changes Proposal 01:42:00 Quai Mainnet Visualization 01:45:00 Sharding Coordination 01:46:00 PoEM Consensus Mechanism 01:49:00 Chain Work & Withholding 01:52:00 Work Shares Explained 01:54:00 Miner Shard Choice & Balance 01:57:00 Privacy in Sharding 01:59:00 Settlement Time Trade-Off 02:00:00 Ethereum Usage Stats 02:03:00 Qi Token & Energy Dollar 02:12:00 Quai Deflationary Supply 02:16:00 Qi Privacy Properties 02:24:00 Node Incentives & Markets 02:27:00 Kipper Tipping App 02:31:00 Blip Pay Wallet Demo 02:40:00 EVM Big Deal 02:43:00 Quai Launch Reception 02:47:00 Industry Reviews 02:49:00 PoW Sampling Theory 03:02:00 Kipper Demo 03:07:00 Multiplatform Kipper 03:12:00 Qi Denominations & Pruning 03:14:00 Messaging via Qi 03:15:00 PWAs Advantages 03:19:00 Neo PoW Explained 03:21:00 Data Provider Agnostic 03:23:00 Transaction Propagation 03:26:00 Global TPS Demand 03:28:00 Interchange Integration 03:31:00 Direct Crypto POS 03:33:00 Node Requirements in Sharding 03:35:00 Kaspa Attention Reasons 03:38:00 ASIC Future in Quai 03:41:00 Trilemma & Tetralemma 03:43:00 Hierarchy Trade-Offs 03:47:00 Security Notes 03:50:00 Resource Markets 03:52:00 Quantum Resistance 03:57:00 Work Shares Uses 04:00:00 Decentralized Pools (Dools) 04:02:00 Quai Simplicity 04:07:00 Tree Chains Comparison 04:09:00 Homogeneous Security 04:10:00 Vitalik Story 04:18:00 Qi Details 04:24:00 Dool Mechanics 04:27:00 Work Shares Info 04:29:00 2000 Viewers Milestone 04:29:00 Magic Word 04:31:00 Monero Reorgs & Qubic 04:34:00 Transaction Censorship 04:37:00 Red Balloon Problem 04:38:00 Selfish Mining 04:42:00 Liquidity Arc 04:44:00 Culture Challenge 04:46:00 Regional Trends 04:48:00 State Bloat vs Consensus 04:51:00 Storage Scaling 04:54:00 Propagation Time 04:56:00 400ms Lower Bound 04:58:00 Interplanetary Transactions 05:00:00 Reference Resolution 05:05:00 Propagation & Consensus 05:07:00 Independent Samples 05:08:00 Price Pump 05:10:00 Ideology & Tech 05:11:00 Bitcoin Scaling Limits 05:12:00 Gold as PoW 05:14:00 Self-Custody 05:17:00 Yield & MSTR 05:20:00 Pandemic Inflation 05:22:00 Dollar Future 05:24:00 Bitcoin Heterodoxy 05:25:00 Maximalism 05:29:00 Cult Dynamics 05:30:00 Mises & Rothbard 05:32:00 Roger Ver 05:36:00 Saylor Infiltration 05:37:00 Memes & Philosophies 05:38:00 Leader Emergence 05:39:00 CIA Speculation 05:40:00 Who is Satoshi? 05:41:00 Code Quality 05:42:00 Burning Keys 05:43:00 Martti Malmi Insights 05:44:00 Satoshi Is Not NSA 05:45:00 21m Is Arbitrary 05:46:00 Early Changes 05:47:00 Block Size Temp 05:48:00 Economics Assumptions 05:49:00 Satoshi Scaling 05:52:00 Tech Optimism 05:53:00 Industry Honesty 05:56:00 Sharding Complexity 05:57:00 PoW Scalability 05:58:00 Consensus Efficiency 05:59:00 Sharding Compat 06:00:00 Memes as Rhetoric 06:02:00 Hoskinson Cult 06:03:00 Fake Engagement 06:04:00 Steam Adoption 06:07:00 Overstock & Patrick Byrne 06:10:00 Design Philosophy 06:11:00 Frustrated Devs 06:12:00 Talent Exodus 06:14:00 Follow Dr. K 06:15:00 Message to Yonatan 06:16:00 Quai vs Kaspa 06:17:00 Closing Remarks

Sergej Kotliar is the CEO of Bitrefill, while Matt Ahlborg recently created PPQ.AI to enable millions of users to experience LLMs without expensive subscriptions. But how are bitcoin payments doing? In this episode, they present their latest stats. Time stamps: 00:00:48 – Introducing Sergej Kotliar and Matt Aalborg 00:02:20 – Bitrefill’s Lightning Network Experience & Payment Trends 00:04:13 – Shift from Bitcoin Maximalism to Multi-Chain Usage 00:05:47 – Tron, Ethereum, and Payment Method Comparisons 00:10:04 – Defining Post-Maximalism 00:11:08 – Changing Morality and Ideology in Bitcoin 00:13:12 – Proof of Reserves & Bitcoin Company Transparency 00:14:15 – Bitrefill’s Payment Method Rankings 00:18:00 – Payment Method Percentages & Dashboard Usage 00:20:21 – Decline in On-Chain Bitcoin Payments 00:24:46 – Popular Wallets for Bitrefill Purchases 00:27:53 – Bitrefill’s Business Growth & Marketing 00:29:04 – Adoption Pace & Decentralization Tradeoffs 00:31:35 – Centralized vs. Decentralized Chains & Security 00:33:51 – Stablecoins’ Role in Crypto Payments 00:35:25 – Bitcoin as Store of Value vs. Stablecoins as Medium of Exchange 00:36:26 – American Influence & “Never Spend Your Bitcoin” Narrative 00:38:47 – Bitcoin Spending Trends & Storage Habits 00:43:34 – Crypto Usage Beyond Bitcoin & Banking Systems 00:44:24 – Bitrefill’s Current Offerings & eSIM Growth 00:47:50 – Integration with Traditional Payment Networks 00:49:29 – Loss of libertarian ethos and Bitcoin community fragmentation. 00:51:41 – Support for Privacy Coins & Chain Selection 00:57:36 – Monero Usage on PPQ.AI & Regulatory Perceptions 01:00:01 – Liquid Bitcoin & Its Limited Adoption 01:05:16 – NFTs, Gambling, and Network Effects in Crypto 01:07:14 – Changing Narratives & Post-Rationalization 01:09:34 – Bitcoin’s Utopian Vision & Real-World Challenges 01:13:06 – Decentralization’s Gradual Growth & VPN Analogy 01:17:18 – PPQ AI: Naming, Features, and Privacy 01:22:03 – AI Model Variety & User Experience on PPQ AI 01:25:02 – Image & Video Generation with AI 01:27:22 – AI’s Impact on Employment & Content Creation 01:29:42 – AI, Automation, and Crypto Payments for Robots 01:34:02 – How PPQ.AI Handles User Data & Privacy 01:37:22 – Memory Features & User Profiling in AI 01:39:19 – Bitrefill’s Vision for the Future 01:40:29 – PPQ.AI’s Business Model & Growth 01:44:18 – PPQ.AI Model Access, Subscriptions, and Competitors 01:52:03 – PPQ.AI’s Elevator Pitch & Referral Program

Simplicity, a scripting language so simple that it can fit on a t-shirt, has finally launched on Liquid after a decade of development. Andrew Poelstra, who works as director of research at Blockstream, explains how it works & why it's good for Bitcoin. Time stamps: (00:00:50) Introducing Andrew Poelstra (00:01:45) Simplicity: Now Live on Liquid (00:02:12) Elements and Liquid’s Technical Evolution (00:03:09) Is Simplicity a Response to Solidity? (00:05:40) Simplicity’s Programming Model & Rust Inspiration (00:08:04) Demo Applications and Simplicity Playground (00:10:03) Why Not Stick with Bitcoin Script? (00:11:48) Bitcoin Script’s Limitations and Quirks (00:19:14) Simplicity’s Capabilities: Computation & Covenants (00:22:26) Formal Verification and Multi-Language Implementations (00:25:21) Machine-Checkable Proofs and Contract Safety (00:29:07) Covenants, OP_CAT, and Script Extension Fears (00:33:26) Simplicity as a Future Script Extension Path (00:34:31) Ethereum’s Design Mistakes & Simplicity’s Approach (00:53:00) Simplicity’s Lateness and Ethereum’s Rise (01:01:12) Simplicity’s Usability and Adoption Challenges (01:04:18) Potential Use Cases for Simplicity: Vaults, Business Logic, Quantum Signatures (01:08:06) Wallets and Simplicity Integration (01:16:30) Simplicity vs. Soft Forks for New Opcodes (01:19:01) Jets: Optimizing Simplicity with Native Code (01:22:44) Collider Script and High-Cost Emulation (01:24:44) Resource Limits and Transaction Size (01:29:34) Non-Scammy, Technologically Interesting Altcoins: Monero, Zcash, Grin, and Sia (01:33:14) Where to Learn More About Simplicity

Alephium is one of the most interesting Proof of Work projects, which aims to build secure smart contracts & fast DeFi on a mineable base layer which minimizes electricity consumption. Maud Bannwart & Cheng Wang explain how all of this works. Time stamps: 00:00:53 – Introducing Cheng & Maud 00:02:06 – Alephium's Origins & Motivation Cheng explains the technical challenge of blockchain scalability and the project's evolution from sharding to DeFi. 00:04:36 – Choosing UTXO vs. Account Model Why Alephium uses the UTXO model for assets and account model for application state, combining both for scalability. 00:09:50 – Privacy and UTXO Model Advantages of UTXO for privacy and scalability, and how it enables advanced privacy features. 00:11:03 – Blockchain Scalability & Parallelization Cheng details Alephium’s approach to scaling via parallel blockchains, sharding, and optimizing block times. 00:14:41 – Decentralization vs. Shard Coordination Balancing decentralization and coordination in sharded blockchains, and how Alephium’s block flow algorithm works. 00:17:31 – DAG Structure Explanation Explanation of DAG (Directed Acyclic Graph) and its benefits for transaction management and scalability. 00:19:44 – Shard Synchronization & Security Handling shard failures, synchronization, and ensuring security with proof of work and honest hashrate. 00:21:09 – Block Time, Decentralization & Node Requirements Trade-offs of faster block times, decentralization, and hardware requirements for running Alephium nodes. 00:25:22 – Blockchain Pruning & Storage Current state of blockchain storage, pruning, and why further optimization is not a priority. 00:27:13 – ASICs and Mining History Arrival of ASIC miners, mining history, and the impact on the Alephium network. 00:29:33 – Taproot & Smart Contracting Why Alephium chose taproot, its use for scripting, and differences from Ethereum’s approach. 00:33:05 – Proof of Work vs. Proof of Stake Rationale for choosing proof of work, ASIC-friendliness, and the benefits for decentralization and security. 00:37:45 – Technical Advantages of Proof of Work How proof of work simplifies sharding, increases performance, and reduces network complexity. 00:39:56 – DeFi on Proof of Work Addressing claims that DeFi requires proof of stake, and Alephium’s block time and throughput. 00:42:09 – Value of Proof of Work & Community Discussion on the value of proof of work, community importance, and Ethereum’s transition to proof of stake. 00:44:56 – Pre-mine & Project Funding Explanation of Alephium’s pre-mine, funding model, and transparency in initial allocations. 00:50:41 – Transparency & Genesis Block Details on public visibility of genesis allocations and proof of no hidden pre-mine. 00:54:11 – Proof of Less Work Mechanism Introduction and explanation of "proof of less work," reducing energy use by combining proof of work and proof of burn. 01:00:16 – Environmental Criticism & Value Proposition Addressing environmental concerns, mining’s evolving perception, and the necessity of cost in money creation. 01:04:01 – Alephium’s Unique Value & Comparison Alephium’s unique features: smart contracts on proof of work, UTXO security, and differences from Cardano/Ethereum Classic. 01:07:39 – Developer Experience & EVM Compatibility Ease of transitioning from EVM, Alephium’s developer-friendly environment, and challenges with industry standards. 01:14:11 – Alephium Virtual Machine & Language Alephium’s programming language inspired by Rust, Scala, and Solidity, designed for security and ease of use. 01:19:04 – Ecosystem & DApps Overview of existing DApps, third-party development, and ecosystem growth on Alephium. 01:22:16 – Killer App & Platform Potential Discussion on the search for Alephium’s killer app and its potential as a generic platform. 01:23:37 – Danube Hard Fork & Optimizations Faster blocks, better scalability, and user/developer experience improvements. 01:26:25 – Mining Accessibility & Hardware Mining requirements, ASIC recommendations, and the end of GPU mining profitability. 01:29:10 – Hashrate Growth & NiceHash 01:31:56 – Price & Market Position 01:35:19 – Lessons for Bitcoin & Future-Proofing 01:38:56 – Tokenized Bitcoin & UTXO Benefits 01:43:25 – Privacy, Rollups, and Future Features 01:51:11 – Getting Started with Alephium Wallets, documentation, and running a node. 01:53:08 – Upgrade Naming & Community 01:53:43 – Final Thoughts & Contact

Hunter Beast is the author of BIP 360: a proposal that seeks to provide quantum resistance to Bitcoin, to prevent powerful computer builders from brute forcing arbitrary addresses to steal the funds. But is the quantum threat real? Does the number of qubits really make a difference when the quantum computer is general purpose? Shouldn't other industries outside of Bitcoin, especially governments and banks, be worried about the fragility of elliptic curve cryptography? In this episode, we'll try to answer some of these questions and also refer to Hunter Beast's previous experience with building RGB for Bitcoin tokens. ––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Time stamps: 01:08 - Introducing Hunter Beast 01:27 - BIP 360 and Quantum Resistance Hunter Beast introduces BIP 360, aimed at making Bitcoin resistant to quantum computing threats, a hot topic due to predictions of advanced quantum computers potentially breaking ECDSA signatures. 02:19 - Defining Bitcoin's Quantum Threat Quantum computing is institutional, not accessible to average Bitcoiners, making verification difficult. The threat is existential but not immediate, though warnings suggest proximity. 03:58 - U.S. Government Warnings U.S. government and institutions are preparing for quantum resistance by 2030, urging upgrades to protect against potential cryptographic breaks. 05:53 - Consensus Challenges Hard forks ensure UTXO migration but face consensus issues; soft forks are preferred, but coins must move to quantum-resistant addresses to avoid vulnerabilities. 06:38 - Bitcoin’s Quantum Vulnerabilities Taproot, reused addresses, mempool-published data, and exposed public keys are vulnerable. ~90% of reused address coins are active, reducing concern, but Taproot needs upgrades. 09:41 - BIP 360 Solution for Taproot BIP 360 focuses narrowly on fixing Taproot’s vulnerability to long-exposure attacks, enabling wallets to commit to multiple scripts, including quantum-resistant ones like SLHDSA. 13:07 - Signature Schemes ECDSA is Bitcoin’s weak point. Lamport and Winternitz signatures are flawed (one-time use), but SLHDSA (using a hypertree of Winternitz signatures) allows secure address reuse. 17:10 - User Experience Impact BIP 360 minimizes changes to user experience, offering opt-in quantum-resistant scripts. Wallets could include security dials, but defaults remain familiar. 20:14 - Transaction Size and Costs Post-quantum signatures are larger (4-8k bytes), but address commitments are minimal (~34 bytes). Block size increases aren’t necessary; solutions like Bitzip could scale transactions. 22:27 – Sideshift.ai 23:17 - Drivechains and Layer Two Labs Drivechains offer secure sidechain solutions, decentralizing custody and scaling Bitcoin. Testing is available on Signet, with Litecoin considering implementation. 29:48 - Bitcoin Ossification Debate Ossification (resistance to change) vs. necessary upgrades debated. Quantum threats may force changes as Bitcoin secures more value, despite opposition. 36:36 - Conspiracy Theory Counter Concerns about government-driven fear dismissed; BIP 360 is opt-in, only used if quantum threats emerge, preserving user choice. 54:26 - Quantum Computing Progress IBM’s Condor has 1,121 qubits; breaking ECDSA needs ~20M qubits. With quantum advancements outpacing Moore’s Law, upgrades are prudent within a decade. 59:58 - Sponsor Plugs Citrea (ZK rollup for Bitcoin financial apps) and Edge Wallet (duress mode, multi-coin support) highlighted. 01:02:30 - BIP 360 Number Selection BIP 360 assigned by reviewers, not chosen by Hunterbeast, reserved for quantum-related proposals. 01:06:04 - BIP 360 Reception from Core Devs Mixed feedback from reviewers like Ava Chow (called it “stupid” but provided useful critique). Still in draft at bip360.org, open for review. 01:11:29 - Unintended Consequences BIP 360 is minimal, unlikely to cause surprises like Taproot’s ordinal inscriptions, as it enhances existing functionality. 01:12:42 - Is Quantum Resistance Perishable and Needs Updates? BIP 360 isn’t definitive; periodic updates may be needed as quantum computers advance, requiring a proactive Bitcoin culture. 01:19:12 - NoOnes, Bitcoin.com, 01:21:46 - Best Practices for Quantum Safety Avoid address reuse, use native SegWit (BC1Q) addresses, don’t expose Xpubs, and consider private mempools like MARA Slipstream for large transactions. 01:24:27 - Closing Remarks Gratitude to Hunter Beast for discussing BIP 360 and quantum threats, wishing success for the proposal.

Prof. Richard Werner, one of the world's most famous economists, is best known for writing "Princes of the Yen" and penning the term "quantitative easing" in the 1990s while working at the Bank of Japan. Today, he is a big advocate for small local banks and a believer in the power of Bitcoin. In this episode, he talks about recent events in economics, ranging from the Big Beautiful Bill in the US and all the way to CBDCs and Bitcoin's viability to bring more economic freedom to the world. –––––––––––––––––––––– Time stamps: 00:00 - Introducing Professor Richard Werner, author of Princes of the Yen and originator of quantitative easing 01:27 - Sponsorships: Sideshift.ai, Citrea, LayerTwo Labs, Bitcoin.com News, NoOnes.com, and Edge Wallet. 02:07 - Big Beautiful Bill & Fiscal Policy: Discussion on the U.S. "Big Beautiful Bill" under Trump, increasing government spending despite promises to cut debt. Werner clarifies fiscal policy isn't direct money printing, using Japan’s experience as an example where massive spending didn’t cause inflation or growth due to lack of monetization. 05:06 - Monetization Concerns: Concerns about monetizing fiscal policy in the U.S., with Trump’s team encouraging banks to buy treasuries, potentially leading to inflation (8:39). The Federal Reserve’s role in possibly counteracting this is uncertain (9:46). 11:42 - Interest Rates & Quantitative Policy: Werner critiques the focus on interest rates, arguing quantitative policy (credit creation) is the real driver. Interest rates follow growth, not vice versa. 17:52 - Tariffs & Trade Policy: Trump’s return to tariffs (e.g., 30% on EU) is discussed. Werner supports tariffs for economic development, citing historical success and criticizing Ricardo’s free trade theory for ignoring terms of trade (19:24). Smart tariffs should encourage high-value exports and raw material imports (36:05). 44:07 - Austrian Economics Critique: Werner criticizes guru-driven economics, including Austrian school, for dismissing data. He emphasizes empirical, fact-based analysis over ideological axioms (45:58). 49:51 - Argentina & Mainstream Economics: Werner discusses Argentina’s free-market shift under Milei, critiquing mainstream economists like Krugman for often being wrong. Balanced budgets are preferred over debt-heavy policies (51:03). 1:08:58 - Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs): Werner sees no upside to CBDCs, calling them a tool for centralized control. They enable tracking and restricting spending, unlike existing digital currencies (1:13:25). China’s cautious CBDC approach is noted, but Western central banks are distrusted (1:15:22). 1:16:51 - Stopping CBDCs: Strategies to oppose CBDCs include increasing cash use, adopting decentralized cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, and public demonstrations against central banks (1:18:38). 1:20:40 - Stablecoins: Werner views stablecoins like Tether as a potential backdoor for central banks (Plan B) to achieve CBDC-like control, with a stealthier Plan C involving corporate digital reporting (1:23:04). 1:30:22 - EU’s Dictatorial Structure: Werner criticizes the EU’s undemocratic structure, comparing it to the Soviet Union. The European Commission’s power and corruption (e.g., vaccine deals) are highlighted (1:31:22). 1:40:38 - Bitcoin’s Role: Werner doubts a purely deflationary currency like Bitcoin can sustain an economy without credit creation. He suggests small banks using Bitcoin for credit to enable growth (1:41:40). Bitcoin’s shift to a store of value increases risks of a “death switch” (1:47:45). 1:44:42 - Bitcoin Price Prediction: Werner predicts Bitcoin reaching ~$995,000, driven by momentum and institutional adoption, but cautions about risks like an EMP or coded vulnerabilities (1:45:24). 1:52:22 - Bitcoin as Currency: Using Bitcoin for transactions rather than just a store of value could reduce risks and enhance longevity. Werner plans to integrate crypto in his Swiss bank project (1:53:40). 1:55:04 - Closing & Promotions: Werner promotes his Swiss Rhyntal bank project, Substack (rwerner.substack.com), and YouTube channel (Werner Economics).

Liz Steininger is the CEO of Least Authority: a company which specializes in auditing open source software since 2014. Originally founded by Zooko Wilcox, Least Authority has conducted more than 100 security audits in the space. Some of the best known contractors who requested an expert review include the Ethereum Foundation, the Electric Coin Company, Metamask, the KeyStone hardware wallet, and Avalanche. Least Authority also builds products that make use of Zero Knowledge Proofs: PrivateStorage (a cloud storage system that's designed to make the host unaware of the files being stored), ZKAPs (Zero Knowledge Access Passes, an authorization system that separates the payer from the data on the items being bought), and Winden (a file-sharing service that's encrypted and requires no identity from the sender and receiver). In a space which often defers to "check the code, it's open source", companies such as Least Authority offer high quality verification which makes it easier for the average non-technical person to trust that something is safe. Also, it helps builder have the peace of mind that what they're working on will not bring any unforeseen consequences. Time stamps: 00:00 - Intro and Sponsor Mentions 
Introduction to the podcast and sponsors: Sideshift, Bitcoin.com News, EdgeWallet, LayerTwo Labs, Citrea, NoOnes.com, and HODLING.ch. 01:17 - Guest Introduction: Liz Steininger 
Liz Steininger, CEO of Least Authority, is introduced. Discussion begins about the company’s focus on security, privacy, and auditing in the crypto space. 1:57 - Irony of "Least Authority" Having a CEO 
Liz addresses the irony of a company named Least Authority having a CEO, explaining their non-hierarchical approach and balance of leadership. 03:04 - Least Authority Philosophy and Nick Szabo’s Influence 
Discussion on the principle of least authority, referencing Nick Szabo’s 2005 paper and its connection to Zooko, founder of Least Authority. 05:19 - Liz’s Tech Background 
Liz shares her journey into tech, from early internet experiences to open-source and privacy-focused technologies. 09:36 - Role of Auditing Firms in Open-Source 
Exploration of why auditing firms like Least Authority are necessary despite open-source code being publicly verifiable. 11:45 - Surprising Audit Findings 
Liz discusses instances where Least Authority found unexpected issues during audits and the value of helping clients fix them. 12:16 - Notable Clients and Audits 
Overview of Least Authority’s clients, including Zcash, MetaMask, Ethereum Foundation, Filecoin, Polygon, and Keystone hardware wallet. 14:35 - Predicting the Ethereum DAO Hack 
Liz reflects on Least Authority’s 2015 Ethereum audit, which identified vulnerabilities that later contributed to the 2016 DAO hack. 17:43 - When to Conduct Audits 
Discussion on the optimal timing for audits, depending on project roadmaps and feature development. 19:51 - Auditor Liability and Security Guarantees 
Liz explains that no system can be 100% secure and discusses the limitations of auditor liability. 22:25 - Social Engineering and Security 
Exploration of how social engineering can bypass even the most secure systems, with examples like SIM swapping and Pfizer leaks. 29:55 - Least Authority’s Products: Private Storage, ZKAPs, Winden 
Overview of Least Authority’s products: Private Storage (client-side encrypted storage), ZKAPs (zero-knowledge access passes), and Winden (anonymous file transfer). 36:45 - ZKAPs Applications Beyond Storage 
Liz discusses potential uses of ZKAPs for other services requiring privacy in payments, like VPNs or electricity. 43:53 - Winden’s Features and Use Cases 
Detailed explanation of Winden’s end-to-end encrypted, identity-free file transfer, ideal for secure peer-to-peer sharing. 46:21 - Destiny: Mobile Version of Winden 
Introduction to Destiny, a mobile app version of Winden using the same magic wormhole protocol. 50:00 - HRO Cloud for Human Rights Organizations 
Discussion of HRO Cloud, a free version of Private Storage for qualified human rights organizations. 51:00 - Moon Math Manual 
Overview of the Moon Math Manual, a resource for learning about ZK-SNARKs, inspired by the term “moon math” from Vitalik Buterin. 57:38 - Privacy, Law Enforcement, and Zero-Knowledge Proofs 
Liz discusses how Least Authority minimizes data collection to avoid sharing with law enforcement, emphasizing privacy design. 1:01:59 - Privacy Market and Big Tech Adoption 
Reflections on the growing demand for privacy tech and potential adoption of zero-knowledge proofs by major tech companies. 1:05:00 - Auditing Non-Crypto Projects 
Liz notes that while most clients are crypto-related, they also audit non-crypto open-source projects, though funding is a challenge. 1:07:17 - Vibe Coding and Auditing Demand 
Discussion on the rise of vibe coding (AI-generated code) and its potential to increase demand for audits, especially for smart contracts. 1:11:07 - Zcash Audit and Bitcoin Codebase 
Liz considers whether their Zcash audit indirectly audited Bitcoin’s codebase, noting it’s an interesting question for further review. 1:13:05 - Publishing Audit Reports 
Liz advocates for more industry-wide publication of audit reports to improve transparency and user education. 1:18:01 - Competing Auditing Firms 
Liz discusses competition in the auditing space, varying by project type (e.g., smart contracts vs. protocols). 1:21:12 - Future of Privacy and Zcash Integration 
Liz expresses hope for Zcash’s privacy tech to be integrated into Bitcoin, emphasizing its potential to drive mass adoption. 1:24:00 - Liz’s First Computer and Early Tech Memories 
Liz shares nostalgic memories of using an Atari, Commodore 64, and AOL, encouraging listeners to comment “AOL” to prove they watched to the end. 1:28:37 - Closing and Winden Recommendation 
Liz thanks the host and encourages listeners to try Winden, an open-source, free file transfer tool.