Brandon Quittem is a writer and Communications Director for Swan Bitcoin. In this interview, we discuss his latest article: ‘Bitcoin is a Pioneer Species’, where he compares Bitcoin miners to species that settle and populate barren landscapes triggering the development of more advanced ecosystems.

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The acceptance of Bitcoin is an acceptance of the need for continuous education and receptivity. This past year has shown why: Bitcoin mining has been transformed from being a critical but specific cog in the often misunderstood Proof of Work protocol to a tool with the potential to transform the global energy industry. Nobody foresaw this.

Going down the rabbit hole now involves gaining knowledge of energy systems: production methods, grids, distribution networks, batteries, energy economics etc. This knowledge is both a blessing and a curse. A blessing in that the veil of ignorance is lifted on this vital industry showing politicians are driving blind with their policy decisions. A curse in that those sceptical that Bitcoin can change finance, are now incredulous when we state it can transform energy too.

But the logic is clear. Bitcoin can harness electrical energy anywhere in the world. In doing so it can facilitate and thereby fast-track the build-out of energy in isolated environments, becoming a bridge for costly downstream investment needed to connect such sources to a grid. All of this without any need for a state subsidy, or international coordination.

Bitcoin can therefore revitalise existing populations: currently, a billion people don’t have access to electricity. Imagine what benefits could be brought by integrating these people into the digital economy. Bitcoin mining can also be the pioneer species for previously uninhabited areas of the planet. It can take barren areas and provide the economic basis from which further development can grow. Contemplating that should make it clear: we’re still so very early!