Bitcoin 2024: Reflections on the conference.
By Kane KcGukin via The Mesh Point
For the past few years, after every Bitcoin Conference, I take time to reflect on my learnings and observations. What did I see, and what does it mean for Bitcoin’s future and the broader financial system?
Unfortunately, this year, Bitcoin’s main event was hijacked by politicians.
Their presence was so pervasive it degraded the ability to float freely, meet people, and learn from the vast set of stages talking about all things Bitcoin. On the one hand, it’s not exactly a surprise that political interests are laser focused on Bitcoin. On the other hand, it’s difficult to witness Bitcoin being used as a pandering tool.
As with any setback, we must ask ourselves. What is the opportunity? Where is the signal amongst the noise?
Bitcoin Is Much More Than “Number Go Up”
In all honesty, the “number go up” narrative is one of the most fiat-brained ideas in Bitcoin. That doesn’t mean the show can’t go on. The conference this year proved Bitcoin will outlast longer any naysaying from TradFi skeptics.
Bill Mill IV summed them up nicely: “Most people work for somebody else… even if you believe in Bitcoin and you buy on behalf of somebody else, or one of your bosses doesn’t like it. You’re done. You’re head’s chopped off. Whereas, if it goes right, and somebody that you work for didn’t like it; you get a begrudging pat on the back. So, everything comes down to incentives.”
So, why is there such confidence in Bitcoin? Because of three things:
- The Nakamoto Stage opening presentation.
- The focus on Bitcoin as a solution to our energy infrastructure problem.
- Edward Snowden, 4th Turnings, and the power of paradigm shifts
Mastering Strategic Thinking
To kick off the conference, on the Nakamoto main stage, was Sophie von Laer’s talk: Mastering Strategic Thinking & Leading Bitcoin Companies Effectively.
What stood out most was it felt like a subtle psychological prep for what is to come and what types of individuals will be recruited to lead the charge. The talk felt like a high-level intelligence briefing, with its nuanced linguistic framing and psychological messaging. While I can’t say for certain if this was intentional, the theme became increasingly apparent over the next few hours and days.
There was a heavy government influence throughout Bitcoin 2024. Whether it be Trump, one of the numerous politicians, or Edward Snowden it was made clear that Bitcoin’s network would be a pivotal tool for decades to come.
Sophie’s descriptions of a Strategic Maverick, the strategic mindset, new paradigms, and the necessity of disconnection to achieve connection, felt very foretelling of what will be required for the chaos we’re living through (see 4th Turning).
Her thoughts on how we program and condition leaders seemed to outline an expectation for Bitcoiners who will inevitably partner with political forces as they bare down.
The framing around “thinking about not just your own needs but the needs of those around you” sounded much more moral, principled, and unifying than the divisiveness of our current DEI handbook.
- Strategic Plan = continuous improvement and evolution
- Strategic Alliance = it takes a village, a tribe
- “Knowing the intersection of the things going on around you.”
- Adaptive Resilience = manage change effectively
- “Culture that fosters the change that is going on.”
- Positive Psychology = focus on the things you do well in life.
- A culture that thinks together becomes more coherent. We’ve got a lot of work to do based on where we stand today.
Strategic Maverick’s understand Adaptive Resilience: “The period of rest after change allows you to become the thing you want. Someone truly becomes adaptive in this time.” A framing, or warning? It seemed fitting for Bitcoin and Bitcoiners alike, amid this paradigm shift.
Bitcoin: an Energy Infrastructure Solution
Beyond politics, Bitcoin’s role in revamping the US energy infrastructure was a major focus of the conference. The recurring theme was that we are still early in this new paradigm.
Tennessee Senator Bill Hagerty made a great point in his talk when he highlighted that post-WWII was about expanding people, goods, and energy use in the US. To continue to support all that growth, we need more energy efficiency. And, caught in the middle of all the economic growth and the increasing energy demand is our money.
Bitcoin miners provide solutions to both monetary and energy challenges. They help balance energy use and, more importantly, generate revenue for utility companies by purchasing excess energy that would otherwise be wasted. As Harry Sudock succinctly put it, “Revenue cures everything.”
What better way to solve an energy issue than with machines that can switch on and off, easily balancing our stressed grid?
These machines provide revenue during periods that would otherwise be unprofitable. Additionally, they offer the flexibility to shut down during peak energy consumption, preventing the drain on scarce power.
Our modern economy relies heavily on advanced technologies. As we move forward, we’ll require significant updates and optimizations to our energy infrastructure, networks, and server farms. Each of these technologies has an exponential energy component. Bitcoin is the only solution that computes both money and energy in exponential form.
Edward Snowden: “Cast a Vote, Don’t Join a Cult”
Snowden’s greatest point was dousing cold water on the political parade. He attempted to bring us back down to earth a bit by offering several reminders that neither political party is as much your friend, as they are just out to get Bitcoiners to love them. Citing past behaviors, he urged us to remain caustious with this quote:
“for in every country of the world, I believe, the avarice and injustice of princes and sovereign states, abusing the confidence of their subjects, have by degrees diminished the real quantity of metal, which had been originally contained in their coins.” -Adam Smith
Edward reminded us that technologies have historically been designed to benefit “them”, organizations and politicians. This perspective makes it easier to envision a future where privacy diminishes as quickly as we can now connect, considering the six degrees of separation.
He touched briefly on the moral dilemma we face. Reminding us that our internal system feels broken, because of our broken money. With political interference, we may have started a new version of the same game, but with new rules. In this game, we should all be prepared to make difficult decisions.
Among many enlightening quotes Snowden made, I thought these two are worth remembering:
“We are competing constantly and cooperating rarely. We need to change that.”
“The internet is broken because the institution is competing against the individual, and the individual against another individual.”
Peter Theil made reference to the idea behind the first quote in his book Zero to One, and the second quote offered powerful insights to the situation we’re watching unfold.
Tying it All Together
The message was clear throughout Bitcoin 2024 we are headed for a paradigm shift on the other side of this 4th turning, and the Bitcoin tribe is believed to have the leaders that will shape the culture of our future.
Bitcoin is now mainstream. It’s still early in the adoption phase, but the Bitcoin network will be a crucial tool for our future.
How that future is shaped, and Bitcoin’s role in our financial system, will depend on which side of the aisle gains control and how they choose to use it. Will it be an asset and means to rebuild our aging energy infrastructure or is it just another monitoring device? Only time will tell.
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