Xenu is the anti-moonboy: someone who is deeply dedicated to promoting digital money as something that you use to purchase goods & services, and a black market connoisseur. In this episode, we talk about Bitcoin & tackle the Moreno vs Zcash debate.

Time stamps:

00:01:46 - Welcome to Bitcoin Takeover podcast

00:01:52 - Vlad introduces himself and Xenu

00:02:06 - Debating Zcash vs Monero

00:02:44 - Xenu thanks Vlad

00:03:36 - AI and aesthetics discussion

00:03:41 - Vlad sold XMR for ZEC and Zano

00:04:31 - Zano as CryptoNote fork

00:05:18 - Bitcoin as speculative asset

00:06:55 - Satoshi white paper vs Michael Saylor

00:09:24 - Ordinals and blockchain data

00:10:11 - Filters war and Simpsons meme

00:11:36 - Bitcoin Knots vs Samurai Wallet

00:12:18 - Privacy as key to censorship resistance

00:13:01 - Op_Return and Samourai conflicts

00:14:04 - Luke Dash Jr critiques

00:15:50 - Paul Sztorc and drivechains

00:18:03 - Bitcoin Core devs like Ava Chow, Gloria Zhao

00:20:13 - Potential Bitcoin fork

00:21:45 - Government attacks on privacy

00:23:12 - Adam Back's profile

00:24:15 - Lightning Network failures

00:25:53 - Citrea ceremony and L2 scaling

00:26:36 - Mining sustainability concerns

00:28:44 - Bitcoin Strategic Reserve meme

00:30:30 - Gold vs Bitcoin flipping

00:32:00 - Regulations like MiCA in Europe

00:35:37 - Visa network irony for Bitcoin

00:36:59 - Subverted counterculture

00:39:05 - Rise and Rise of Bitcoin doc

00:41:19 - Coinbase and custodians

00:42:31 - Samourai Wallet plea

00:43:10 - Bitcoin cultural issues

00:45:23 - Tornado Cash devs as heroes

00:46:05 - Ethereum as better cypherpunks

00:48:03 - Ethereum underrated

00:49:19 - Privacy laws outdated

00:50:19 - Roman Storm t-shirt in trial

00:53:44 - Zashi wallet and Near integration

00:55:01 - Zcash culture elitism

00:58:05 - Inflation bug concerns

01:00:25 - Zcash as company token

01:02:01 - Dev fund and delivery

01:03:02 - Dandelion++ from Bitcoin

01:04:15 - Bitcoin rejects privacy tech

01:05:02 - Demand Z-to-Z transactions

01:06:55 - Timing analysis attacks

01:08:14 - Zcash avoiding "smoke"

01:09:29 - Academics funding challenges

01:10:31 - Monero devs like Luke Parker

01:12:04 - Zcash tech in Bitcoin/Ethereum

01:14:11 - Stablecoins using ZK proofs

01:15:04 - Monero quality over quantity

01:17:03 - Memecoins as political statement

01:18:51 - Declining Lightning adoption

01:20:24 - Shielded pool growth

01:21:50 - Zcash self-defeating history

01:22:54 - Zcash vs Monero transactions

01:24:06 - NGPT and merchant usage

01:25:02 - Passion for spending Monero

01:26:27 - Free market dynamics

01:27:06 - Zcash pump as bubble sign

02:27:20 - Zcash progress and integrations

02:27:59 - Project persistence

02:28:24 - Zcash traceable statements

02:28:53 - Forking debate

02:29:53 - Blockstream in Monero

02:30:17 - Liquid network ghost town

02:31:03 - Zcash usage comparison

02:31:50 - Zcash explorer check

02:32:30 - Shielded stats

02:34:05 - Shielded pool growth

02:35:39 - 100% shielded demand

02:36:04 - Pirate Chain issues

02:37:04 - Forks treatment: Zcash vs Monero

02:38:52 - Encouraging tech experiments

02:40:06 - Xenu name origin

02:41:47 - Scientology lore

02:42:05 - Community forks response

02:43:16 - Zcash-Monero tensions

02:43:34 - Monerotopia invite decline

02:44:13 - Discouraging forks

02:44:47 - XMR toxicity towards Zano

02:45:30 - Monero stablecoins?

02:46:29 - Chat: X accounts recommendations

02:47:44 - Hit on Joel Valenzuela

02:48:04 - Community toxicity

02:49:24 - Calling out behavior

02:50:00 - Luke Parker quit incident

02:51:02 - Proof of work work

02:53:16 - Nation state attacks

02:54:48 - Dev attitudes

02:55:47 - Broader adversaries

02:56:53 - Privacy incentives

02:57:34 - Personal privacy motivations

02:59:00 - Darknet experiences

03:00:07 - Zashi wallet node connect

03:01:20 - Post-cap mining

03:02:08 - Monero dev count

03:02:43 - Talent replacement

03:03:52 - Multi-coin world

03:04:13 - DAG tech

03:04:20 - Tornado Cash, Samourai

03:04:39 - Wasabi differences

03:06:56 - Closing thoughts

03:07:18 - Dark Market Maximalism

03:08:39 - Xenu's reaction when ZEC flips XMR

03:10:08 - Anti-Moonboy content

03:11:02 - Cheap shots

03:11:56 - Closing remarks

03:12:19 - Rematch idea

03:13:07 - Chat comments

03:14:23 - Zano conference

03:15:00 - Wownero follow

03:15:32 - Feedback request

03:16:06 - Proxy names

03:17:32 - Is Vlad the Peter Schiff of Monero?

03:18:13 - Schiff family

03:19:16 - Final thanks

While the Bitcoin Core v30 vs Knots debate went on, Paul Sztorc was hard at work building the Drivechains software. However, this doesn't meant that he doesn't have any opinions about the recent events and their greater significance.

Time stamps:

00:01:30 - Welcome to the Bitcoin Takeover Podcast and Paul's Second Appearance This Season

00:02:28 - Bitcoin Civil War: Core v30 vs Knots Debate

00:03:02 - Nick Szabo Joining the Debate and Ties to Samson Mow's Company

00:04:11 - Op Return Limit Silliness and Historical Bitcoin Uncensored Humor

00:05:21 - Shift in Bitcoin Community: From Subversive to Suit Coiner Route

00:06:02 - Resistance Money, Privacy, and Black/Gray Markets

00:09:18 - Rambling Due to Sickness/Jetlag and Software Demo Tease

00:09:29 - LayerTwo Labs Software Overview and Download Instructions

00:11:55 - Tweet on Turning Transactions into JPEGs

00:13:00 - Bit Window Software Explanation vs Bitcoin Knots

00:15:31 - Bit 300 Activator vs Bitcoin Core Pull Requests

00:17:25 - No More Soft Forks in Bitcoin and Activation Challenges

00:18:23 - CTV Almost Activated, Shift to Filter Debates

00:19:10 - Bitcoin's Potential Death from Complacency

00:19:36 - Derangements of Bitcoin Post and Lightning as Sacred Cow

00:20:02 - Tabconf Presentation on Lightning Network Issues

00:22:52 - Lightning Network Blackpill Article and Updates

00:24:40 - Lightning Cult and Misunderstandings

00:26:24 - Promoting Chaumian Ecash and Human Rights Foundation

00:27:03 - Funding R&D: Ecological Impacts and Bad Ideas

00:29:02 - Maginot Line Example: Funding Bad Defenses

00:30:16 - Drivechains Activation on Litecoin Progress

00:31:58 - Next Tests: Testnet 4 and Forknet Realism

00:32:58 - Litecoin Activation Process and Differences

00:34:49 - Dogecoin Merged Mining and Potential Activation

00:35:26 - Sky Doge as First Drivechain Chain

00:36:50 - Bit Window Advantages Over Knots

00:37:25 - Views on Mining Pools and Game Theory

00:40:05 - Critique of Luke Dash Jr.'s Ideas on Pools

00:41:05 - Transaction Relay Policies and Miner Incentives

00:41:47 - Emotional Manipulation in Debates

00:43:13 - Raising Funding and Different Approaches vs Luke

00:44:02 - Marketing: Funny Videos and Memes

00:45:05 - Luke Dash Jr.'s Character and Expertise

00:46:05 - Experts vs Elites in Bitcoin

00:48:08 - Testing LayerTwo Labs Software on OSes

00:48:38 - Windows/Linux Discussion and Preferences

00:59:30 - ZK Rollups and Data Availability on Bitcoin (Post-Truncation)

01:00:06 - Non-Miner L2s Have No Future

01:01:47 - Drivechain as Minimal, Optional Soft Fork

01:02:55 - Tom Cruise Party Analogy for Bitcoin Upgrades

01:03:08 - Derangements of Bitcoin Post Recommendation

01:03:50 - Viewer Comment: Layer 2s Bad, More Altcoins Needed

01:04:03 - Importance of Competition in Crypto

01:07:02 - Altcoins as Regression Due to Switching Costs

01:08:33 - Sponsor Plugs: LayerTwo Labs, SideShift, Bitcoin.com, NoOnes

01:09:07 - Questions: Why Zcash for Fungibility Sidechain? DAGs?

01:13:35 - Prediction Market L2 and Ambitious Design

01:14:24 - Truthcoin History and Inspiration for Others

01:16:34 - Robin Hanson as Prediction Market OG

01:17:23 - Zcash vs Monero: Code Forks and Privacy Comparison

01:21:30 - Privacy via Decoys vs Pools in Zcash/Monero

01:24:10 - Zcash Advantages for Sidechains

01:26:30 - Zcash Drawbacks Ideal for Sidechain Rollovers

01:27:42 - Zcash as Research Lab for Bitcoin/Ethereum

01:28:07 - R&D as Creative Endeavor Over Funding

01:30:19 - Zcash Launch Story and Roger Ver's Influence

01:31:08 - Truthcoin Parallels and Sidechain Intent

01:32:03 - Maximalist Sacrifices for Bitcoin

01:32:31 - Blockstream's Failure and Altcoin Rise

01:34:29 - Thoughts on DAGs (e.g., Kaspa, Quai)

01:36:20 - SPV Importance and Satoshi's Vision

01:39:05 - SPV Balances Security and Convenience

01:39:59 - DAGs Not Solving Key Scaling Problems

01:42:42 - Shitcoin Definition: Outdated Dichotomy

01:43:53 - Optimism for Bitcoin's Future Choice

01:45:32 - One Coin to Rule Them All Analogy

01:45:38 - Thanks, Wrap-Up, and Jay Berg Recommendation

01:46:54 - Future Live Demo Tease

01:47:16 - Join Drivechain Insiders Telegram Group

01:48:41 - Closing and Thanks

Sean Bowe is a cryptographer and engineer who is best known for revolutionizing Zcash. After cooperating to fix the inflation bug in the first version of the network, he built Halo to remove the trusted setup – basically obliterating the main reason why Bitcoin did not activate the Zerocash soft fork in 2013.

More recently, Sean Bowe announced project Tachyon: an ambitious initiative to scale ZK SNARKs (the technology enabling shielded transactions) to billions of users.

Time stamps:

00:01:19 - Sean Bowe's Work on Zcash and Hidden Inflation Bug Fix

00:01:36 - Introduction to Halo and Halo 2: Eliminating Trusted Setup

00:01:51 - Overview of Project Tachyon for Scaling ZK-SNARKs

00:02:43 - Zcash Price Pump and Dance Celebration

00:04:48 - Using Zcash for Encrypted Messages via Zashi Wallet

00:05:42 - Comparing Zcash Messaging to Signal

00:07:17 - Sean Bowe's Early Involvement in Zcash and Bitcoin

00:10:34 - Sean Bowe's Age and Start in Cryptography at 21

00:11:13 - Discovering Bitcoin in 2011 and Privacy Needs

00:13:42 - Contributing to BIP 39 with Slush and Trezor

00:14:19 - Realizing Bitcoin's Lack of Privacy

00:17:50 - Privacy vs. Deniability in Bitcoin and Banks

00:20:23 - Wasabi Wallet and CoinJoins Limitations

00:21:46 - Optional Privacy in Zcash and Wallet Defaults

00:23:16 - Viewer Question: Source of Sean Bowe's Smartness

00:24:47 - Viewer Question: Ideas from Scaling Bottlenecks

00:27:09 - Viewer Quote from Oscar Wilde on Privacy

00:28:07 - Viewer Question: Zcash Network State Meaning

00:30:00 - Viewer Question: Timeline for Tachyon Success

00:33:15 - Chronological Approach to Interview and Tachyon

00:37:33 - Differences Between Zerocoin (Firo) and Zerocash (Zcash)

00:39:55 - Greg Maxwell's CoinJoin and Zerocoin Views

00:42:57 - Moon Math and Cryptographic Assumptions

00:46:33 - Sponsor: Citrea ZK Rollup with BitVM

00:47:19 - Sponsor: Layer2 Labs ZSide Drive Chain

00:49:01 - Sponsor: Bitcoin.com News

00:50:16 - Zcash Leads Crypto Rally News

00:58:49 - Bitcoin's Constraints and Creativity like BitVM

01:05:00 - Zcash Contributors and Zebra Rust Node

01:14:00 - Friendly Forks in Zcash

01:31:00 - Monero Hater Comments and Zcash Anonymity

02:23:00 - Superhero Backstory Tease

02:26:14 - Bitcoin Talk Username and Early ASIC Mining

02:28:35 - Pessimism on Bitcoin Development Speed

02:50:41 - Shielded Zcash Dust Problem

02:52:11 - Quantum Resistance and Self-Transfers

02:53:00 - Long-Term Storage Pool for Quantum Safety

02:54:56 - Avalanche Pre-Consensus like eCash

02:55:04 - Tachyon and Oblivious Synchronization

02:58:56 - Scaling to Billions: Math and No Bottlenecks

03:02:12 - Solving Privacy-Scaling Trilemma

03:04:51 - Off-Chain Secrets and Payment Protocols

03:06:24 - Tachyon as New Privacy Pool

03:12:56 - Wallet Syncing with Tachyon Servers

03:14:50 - Shielded Aggregation in Tachyon

03:17:00 - Tachyon Team Size and Hiring Rust Engineers

03:18:41 - ETA for Tachyon: Next Year

03:23:15 - Greg Maxwell Paper Citation Story

03:25:11 - Explaining ZK-SNARKs to Polkadot Cryptographers

03:31:01 - Zcash Governance and No Benevolent Dictator

03:35:06 - Memos Bloating Blockchain and Anonymity Boost

03:38:06 - Zcash Compatibility with Bitcoin Privacy

03:39:01 - Following Sean Bowe: X Account and Blog

On October 1st 2025, Paxful announced the decision to "wind down operations" and blamed the "misconduct" of co-founder Ray Youssef for the company's trajectory. But Ray Youssef had already moved on since 2023, building NoOnes as a non-US entity which better serves the peer to peer needs of the Global South.

In this episode, Ray explains what's going on and what he's planning to do next.

Time stamps:

00:01:08 - Introducing Ray Youssef

00:01:15 - Discussion on Paxful Termination and NoOnes as a Better Alternative

00:01:29 - Ray Youssef Accused of Undermining Paxful

00:02:54 - Paxful Press Release on Winding Down Operations

00:03:31 - Ray Youssef's Response and Exit from Paxful

00:03:46 - Warnings About Paxful's 3,000 Bitcoin in Cold Storage

00:04:29 - American Regulations Impacting Paxful

00:05:15 - New Indian Team at Paxful

00:05:27 - BitGo as Former Custodian for Paxful

00:05:53 - Dormant Tax Introduced by Paxful (Taxful Pun)

00:08:36 - Ray Youssef's Beard and Hair Discussion

00:09:23 - Expulsion from Bitcoin Church and Fatwa by High Priests

00:10:07 - Bitcoin as Financial and Monetary System

00:10:44 - NoOnes Replacing Financial Pillar for Global South

00:10:49 - Economic Apartheid Concept

00:11:15 - Ray Youssef Homeless When Starting Paxful

00:11:20 - Ex-Co-Founder (Artur Schaback Implied) as Business Partner Warning

00:11:50 - Executive Team Letters Against Ex-Co-Founder

00:12:03 - Attempt to Shut Down Paxful and Handle 3,000 Bitcoin

00:12:47 - Lawsuit by Ex-Co-Founder on Martin Luther King Day

00:13:03 - Accusations and Projections by Ex-Co-Founder

00:13:27 - Fintech Company Without Engineers During Lawsuit

00:14:23 - Ex-Co-Founder Incompetent as CPO

00:15:05 - $1.6 Million from Ray Youssef to Unfreeze Funds

00:15:29 - Delaware Law Firm Handling Paxful

00:15:35 - New Indian CEO Removing Paxful from LinkedIn Bio

00:16:00 - Ray Narrative on BitcoinMagazine.com

00:16:17 - Ex-Co-Founder Raiding Estonian Office

00:18:32 - Kate Grazic Back for NoOnes Partner Program

00:18:57 - LocalBitcoins Traders at NoOnes

00:19:03 - Paxful Family Reunited at NoOnes

00:19:27 - NoOnes Structure Outside the West

00:21:07 - 3,000 Bitcoin Worth $360 Million

00:24:56 - Own Account Bitcoin Disappeared from Paxful

00:24:59 - Solana Contract Issue in January

00:25:04 - Nick Carter Calling Ray Youssef a Clown

00:25:11 - Ari David Paul Accusing Scamming with NoOnes

00:25:24 - Support for Gaza and Palestine

00:25:30 - Nick Carter and Ari David Paul as Zionists

00:26:19 - Hack During Hajj in Medina

00:27:34 - Solana Bug Leading to Hack

00:28:09 - Ray Youssef Driving a Mini Cooper

00:30:42 - Muy from Ghana as Top Advocate at NoOnes

00:33:07 - Victor Schauberger's Work on Water

00:35:43 - WeChat of the Global South (NoOnes Vision)

00:36:27 - Silk Road Comparison (Clean Version)

00:37:28 - CivKit Project

00:37:34 - Nicholas Gregory (CivKit Collaborator)

00:37:41 - Commerce Block

00:38:29 - DarkFi Project

00:38:34 - Amir Taaki (Narodism) as Original Bitcoin Developer

00:42:38 - Roger Ver Attacked by Trolls

00:44:21 - Michael Saylor Meeting

00:45:58 - Adam Back as Skinny Twerp

00:59:18 - Tokenization Experiments by Ray Youssef

01:04:09 - Shelby Cobra 3D-Printed Car Project

01:04:34 - Water Bottle Structuring Water (Victor Schauberger Inspired)

01:06:17 - Malcolm X, Muammar Gaddafi, African Heroes on Wall

01:18:06 - Bitcoin.com News

01:18:43 - Roger Ver Quoted

01:20:06 - Roger Ver as Hero

01:21:03 - Bitcoin Cash

01:23:00 - Lunar the Silver Star (Sega CD Game)

01:23:14 - Garsh Hellcream (Warcraft Reference)

01:24:37 - XMR Bazaar (Monero Marketplace)

01:25:32 - Layer 2 Labs (Drivechains)

01:26:05 - Zcash Sidechain

01:26:12 - Thunder (Big Block Bitcoin Sidechain)

01:27:25 - Citrea (ZK Rollup for Bitcoin)

01:32:57 - Litecoin and MWEB (Mimblewimble Extension Block)

01:33:10 - Bitcoin Cash

01:33:17 - Monero

01:34:12 - Age of Empires (Priest Rush Invented by Ray Youssef)

01:35:52 - Sandy Peterson (Age of Empires Designer)

01:36:06 - USA Stablecoin Act

01:37:02 - Monerotopia Event

01:37:39 - Vitalik Buterin (In Photo)

01:40:17 - Val Venis (WWE Wrestler)

01:41:10 - Taxes Abolished in New World

01:45:15 - Sideshift (Swap Platform)

Jay Berg joined Bitcoin in 2010 and became the first person to tweet about BTCUSD when the price hit a new high of $12. In this episode, he talks about why most Bitcoiners are wrong in their recent filter debate and how SidePit aims to fix trading.

Time stamps:

00:01:57 - Hot take: Maxis wrong, shitcoining new Bitcoining

00:03:00 - Bitcoin kernel: Litecoin, Ethereum, Zcash, Lightning, Liquid

00:03:23 - Bitcoin failed as P2P cash

00:04:09 - Filters vs. OP_RETURN debate

00:05:18 - Luke Dash Jr. fork prediction

00:05:45 - Original sin: No OP_CTV (BIP 119)

00:06:47 - 2017 civil war: Gavin Andresen, Mike Hearn

00:07:45 - Craig Wright conspiracy

00:08:42 - Wright intro: Bitcoin Belle, Gavin signing (2015)

00:09:32 - Debate with Nick Szabo

00:10:02 - Szabo denies Satoshi; Hal Finney, John Nash possibles

00:11:05 - Civil war apology

00:12:08 - Shitcoiner as new maxi

00:12:42 - Code over 21M meme

00:13:58 - Jay's background: Bloomberg, EURUSD

00:14:49 - 1998 digital cash, double spend

00:15:39 - Fortress HFT

00:17:03 - Bitcoin discovery (2009)

00:18:36 - BTCUSD tweets: Newberg Consulting

00:20:00 - 2010-2014 decentralized era

00:21:10 - Roger Ver adoption (2011)

00:21:30 - BitMEX on 2010 data debates

00:22:01 - OP_RETURN war: Counterparty, Omni

00:22:34 - Ethereum rise

00:23:13 - CP FUD on chain

00:23:36 - Cognitive dissonance

00:24:30 - Ethereum wars: Jimmy Song, Samson Mow

00:25:01 - Ethereum scales Bitcoin tweet

00:27:11 - Plebs control post-2017

00:28:05 - 21M changeable

00:29:06 - BIP 42: Pieter Wuille

00:30:23 - Security budget FUD

00:30:57 - Ethereum VM anti-pattern

00:32:25 - Rock-paper-scissors example

00:35:03 - MEV in DeFi

00:38:12 - Ethereum scales post-war

00:38:45 - Roger Ver buy Core attempt

00:38:52 - Luke Jr. block increase

00:39:38 - OP_CTV from no two-way peg

00:40:05 - Blocked by Adam Back

00:41:36 - Full RBF issue

00:42:10 - Sponsor: Layer2 Labs, Paul Sztorc, Drivechain (BIP 300)

00:42:35 - Sidechains: Thunder, Zside, BitAsset, EthSide

00:43:45 - Litecoin BIP 300 test

00:44:26 - Lightning not Bitcoin

00:45:44 - Sponsor: Citrea ZK rollup

00:46:02 - DeFi, Tornado Cash on Bitcoin

00:47:29 - OP_RETURN bytes need

00:50:02 - Lightning custodians

00:50:58 - Lightning as Bitcoin how?

03:26:01 - Zcash soft fork (2013)

03:26:42 - Trump Ethereum: World Liberty

03:27:50 - BIP 300, OP_CTV excitement

03:28:38 - Stubborn fork potential

03:28:49 - Stamp JPEG issue

03:29:11 - Luke Jr. denial

03:30:28 - No real JPEGs

03:32:24 - Gloria Zhao attack

03:32:54 - Matthew Kratter channel

03:33:21 - Mechanic handler theory

03:34:38 - Luke lost Bitcoin

03:35:48 - Richard Heart Hex debate

03:37:20 - Maxi used ETH

03:37:51 - Gresham's law

03:38:56 - Jason Lowery defense

03:40:31 - Naka, David Bailey

03:41:34 - Maxi cycle

03:42:23 - Cult elements

03:42:52 - Hypocrisy: Dogecoin, Litecoin

03:43:30 - Freedom Index: Monero, Zcash, Pirate, Zano, Nym

03:45:43 - Nym mixnet

03:46:44 - Zano tokens, FUSD

03:48:23 - Roger Ver Zano

03:49:40 - Saberhagen Cryptonote

03:51:55 - Alpha vs beta

03:55:10 - Ethereum leveraged BTC

03:56:21 - Opportunity

03:58:21 - Dorsey funding

03:58:51 - Renaissance or burn

03:59:30 - Number up vs fundamentals

04:00:28 - Success/failure

04:02:17 - Laszlo Pizza fear

04:03:00 - Swaps

04:03:24 - Lightning failure

04:04:30 - Platforms differences

04:05:56 - Shitcoiners new

04:07:20 - No blockchain solve?

04:08:49 - 2010-14 decentralized

04:09:40 - Mt. Gox exchanges

04:10:59 - SidePit swaps

04:11:18 - Follow: sidpit.com, JAYBNY

04:11:51 - Launch Q404:15:01 - Next: Sean Bowe Tachyon

04:15:13 - Sponsors: SideShift, Citrea, LayerTwo Labs, Bitcoin dot com News, Noones

Christopher Smith (aka Yuvi Lightman, aka Ganesha 1024) is the founder of the Quantus network: an mbitious quantum-zk blockchain which he proudly built with his team in just 6 months, with a budget of $500k.

In this episode we talk about the threat of quantum computing, how quantum resistant cryptography works, and how Bitcoin can be saved from a potential disaster.

Time stamps:

00:01:31 - Introducing Christopher Smith (Yuvi Lightman), known on Soundcloud Music as Ganesha1024

00:02:22 - Quantis: Zero-Knowledge Quantum-Resistant Blockchain

00:02:39 - Christopher's Background, Early Bitcoin Involvement

00:03:41 - Current Views on Bitcoin, All-Time High at $125K

00:04:19 - Discovering Bitcoin in 2012, Contributions to BitcoinJ

00:04:36 - Founding BitMesh: Micropayments via Payment Channels

00:04:42 - Mike Hearn and Payment Channels

00:05:17 - Bitcoin Whitepaper Praise, Satoshi's Genius

00:05:55 - Essence of Money, Overcomplication Critique

00:06:49 - Bitcoin's Corporate Takeover, Cultural Ethos

00:08:38 - SegWit Changes, Big Block Debate

00:09:45 - Bitcoin Cash Sympathy, Shift to Ethereum

00:10:41 - Vitalik Buterin and Gavin Wood as Geniuses

00:10:53 - Lunar Startup: Blockchain Wikipedia with ICO

00:11:08 - Bitcoin Threats: Throughput, Privacy, Quantum Security

00:11:29 - Child Porn Blackmail Tactics in Debates

00:12:18 - Social Bottlenecks in Coordination

00:13:09 - BTC Token vs Network Separation via ETFs

00:14:06 - Proof of Keys Day by Trace Mayer

00:15:23 - No Trusted Third Parties Philosophy

00:16:04 - Cryptography as Military Tech

00:18:04 - Open Source Importance, ERC20 Simplicity

00:19:21 - BlackRock as Central Bank, Cult of Saturn Symbolism

00:20:17 - Bitcoin Threats: Throughput with Shai Reference

00:22:50 - Privacy and Zcash Praise

00:23:32 - Quantus as Bitcoin Fork with Falcon Signatures

00:24:50 - Solana as Big Blocker Inheritor

00:25:04 - Overton Window Constraints

00:26:41 - Quantus Timelines Skepticism, PsiQuantum Investment

00:28:14 - Ethereum Proof of Stake, Stablecoin Control

00:29:27 - Catholic Church Analogy, Satoshi's Time-Buying Quote

00:30:04 - Weaponized Schizophrenia Concept

00:31:09 - Schizophrenia as Catch-All, LSD Benefits

00:32:21 - False Positives/Negatives in Machine Learning

00:33:34 - Arbitrary Thresholds in Science/Medicine/Physics

00:34:46 - Autistic Definitions, Bitcoin Redefinition

00:36:25 - Douglas Hofstadter's Godel Escher Bach Inspiration

00:37:32 - Ads: Bitcoin.com News

00:38:39 - Citrea: ZK Rollup on Bitcoin

00:40:21 - BIP300 Drivechains by Paul Sztorc

00:41:53 - Hacker Ethos, L2 Complexity Critique

00:43:27 - Lightning Network Failures

00:44:22 - Open Source vs Closed Source Thought Experiment

00:47:00 - Check Phrase for Security

01:00:00 - Quantum Mechanics Wave Function Collapse

02:02:17 - Chris Doesn't Sound Like Typical Founder

02:02:50 - Quantus Features: Reversible Transactions

02:05:23 - Check Phrase Innovation

02:07:29 - HD Wallets for Lattice Cryptography, QIPs

02:08:46 - Pro-Social to Industry, Ethereum Ethos

02:09:00 - Ross Ulbricht on Blockchain Decentralization

02:10:00 - Bitcoin Maximalism Critique

02:10:34 - Satoshi on ZK Proofs Efficiency

02:11:01 - Grin Fair Launch, Kaspa DAG Innovation

02:12:16 - Zcash Innovations, ZK Snarks

02:13:25 - Libraries from Zcash, Fluffy Pony Dismissal

02:14:07 - Zcash Made ZK Practical

02:15:36 - Ethereum Net Positive Despite Mess

02:16:04 - Stablecoins as Freezable CBDCs

02:18:19 - Eye-Openers: Iran Banking Struggles, Argentina Tether Use

02:20:40 - COVID Psychology Lessons

02:22:27 - QE Money Printing Realization

02:23:33 - Legal vs Moral, COVID Non-Compliance

02:25:13 - Forgetting COVID Coercion

02:26:36 - Psychedelic Community Enforcement

02:27:47 - Nature's Cruelty

02:28:55 - Vaccine Divisions

02:30:02 - Each Vaccine Unique, Pavlov's Association

02:31:03 - Freedom License Concept

02:32:01 - Agency and Responsibility

02:34:05 - Frustrated Developers, Utility Missed

02:35:07 - User Adoption Challenges

02:36:01 - Funnel for Adoption, Co-Founder Complement

02:37:38 - Check Phrase for Wallets

02:39:04 - Plato on Politics

02:39:46 - Habeas Corpus History

02:40:40 - Optimism: Sunlight, World Complexity

02:41:36 - Manifesting Intentions

02:42:28 - Soundcloud Recommendation, Quantus Docs

02:43:02 - Music Like Pink Floyd's Great Gig in the Sky

02:44:47 - Amir Taaki 7-Hour Record

02:45:43 - Zooko's 6-Hour Interview

02:46:47 - WeaponizedSchizophrenia.com Blog

02:47:00 - Closing Words

Max Hillebrand makes his 8th appearance on the Bitcoin Takeover Podcast in order to talk about his latest project: White Noise, a private messaging application for Nostr. We also talk about Core v30 vs Knots, Bitcoin layer 2s & other bull market topics.

Time stamps:

00:01:07 - Max Hillebrand's Background

00:02:47 - Post-Wasabi Wallet Era and Privacy Challenges

00:04:28 - Nostr Protocol Overview

00:05:58 - Early Nostr Experiences and Key Loss

00:08:51 - Nostr Client Progress and Edge Cases

00:09:58 - Nostr's Relation to Bitcoin

00:13:53 - Hardware Wallets for Nostr Keys

00:18:06 - Nostr Key Backups and Security

00:21:53 - Nostr Search and Web of Trust

00:24:21 - Ads: Bitcoin.com News and NoOnes.com

00:26:12 - White Noise Protocol Introduction

00:27:52 - NIP 44 and Gift Wraps for Encryption

00:30:20 - Signal Protocol and MLS Evolution

00:32:16 - MLS Protocol Details

00:33:23 - Nostr Privacy Limitations

00:35:17 - Trusted Relays and Metadata

00:37:25 - Nostr as Data Delivery Layer

00:38:41 - Self-Authentication in MLS

00:40:02 - Group Creation and Key Packages

00:42:38 - MLS vs. Major League Soccer Joke

00:42:53 - Diffie-Hellman and Scaling to Millions

00:44:24 - MLS Key Tree Structure

00:46:59 - Scalability Benefits of MLS

01:18:00 - Marmot and Nostr Tools

01:25:30 - The Zcash Pump Dance

03:09:25 - Angor Protocol for Recurring Payments

03:14:02 - Bitcoin Script and Smart Contracts

03:15:32 - Great Script Restoration Proposal

03:21:03 - Builder Spirit in Bitcoin vs. Ethereum

03:25:19 - Bills of Exchange and Peer-to-Peer Credit

03:33:09 - Historical Finance and Farming

03:38:35 - Starting Bitcoin Meetups

03:41:43 - Localizing Bitcoin Content

03:44:17 - Recommended Podcasts

03:47:48 - Podcast Benefits and Guest Interactions

03:54:39 - Audience Quality and Impact

03:55:36 - White Noise Future and Building Freedom Tech

03:58:51 - AI Coding and Proof of Concepts

04:00:38 - Nym Mixnet Integration

04:01:54 - Closing Remarks and Future Sessions

Back in 2013, former WWE Intercontinental Champion Val Venis bought 24 bitcoins for $80 each. Today, he is a big advocate for freedom, privacy, and the right to benefit from the product of your own labor without extortion.

In this episode, we talk about libertarianism, his love for private internet money, and his WWE stories.

Time stamps:

00:00:00 - Intro: Val Venis Entrance & Attitude Era Reflections

00:01:51 - Hello Biological Ladies: Modern PC Culture & Twitter Feuds

00:02:46 - Wrestling Eras: From Attitude to Ruthless Aggression & PG Shift

00:03:30 - Political Outspokenness: Why No Hall of Fame Yet?

00:04:35 - Importance of Politics: Social & Financial Impacts on Society

00:05:13 - Val Venis Character: Porn Star Gimmick Ahead of Its Time

00:05:36 - Right to Censor Storyline: Mocking the PTC & Censorship Trends

00:09:51 - Libertarian Roots: Pro-Free Speech Evolution in Wrestling

00:10:03 - Early Political Views: From Socialist Leanings to Awakening

00:11:32 - Tax Trauma at 17: First Encounter with Government Overreach

00:15:13 - Taxation as Immoral: Due Process Failures & Slanted Courts

00:18:45 - Wikipedia Misrepresentation: Beyond Cannabis Advocacy

00:20:02 - Cannabis as Rebellion: Fighting Malum Prohibitum Laws

00:24:24 - Privacy Coins & Freedom: Using Cannabis to Push Liberty

00:30:05 - Slanted Courts & Tyranny: Presumptions Over Facts in Taxation

00:33:30 - Discovering Bitcoin: From Federal Reserve Critique to White Paper

00:35:12 - Money as Bankers' Tool: Inflation as Value Theft via Fiat

00:38:00 - Bitcoin's Appeal: Decentralized, Fixed Supply & Cryptography

00:41:47 - Pizza Purchase Milestone: Bootstrapping Bitcoin to Fiat

00:43:57 - First Bitcoin Buy: 24 BTC in 2013 at ~$80 Each

00:47:48 - Bitcoin as Speculation vs. Fiat Alternative

00:49:38 - Wrestling & Bitcoin Parallels: Value Creation & Sovereignty

01:20:00 - Monero & Privacy: Evading Surveillance in Transactions

01:45:00 - Roger Ver Case: Libertarian Views on Tax Evasion & Justice

02:10:00 - Wrestling Highlights: Val Venis in Video Games & Stats

02:48:00 - Mount Rushmore: Vince McMahon, Hulk Hogan, Stone Cold, The Rock

03:00:00 - Chris Benoit's Legacy: Wrestling Prowess Despite Tragedy

03:15:00 - Shawn Michaels Character Shift: From Annoying to Faithful

03:30:00 - Undertaker's Success: Vince's Protection & Longevity

03:45:00 - Triple H: Business Savvy Over In-Ring Dominance

04:00:00 - Hall of Fame Hopes: Focus on Liberty Over Induction

04:10:00 - One Last Match: vs. Cody Rhodes for Cancel Culture Feud

04:18:07 - Induction Choice: Vince McMahon or Vince Russo

04:20:19 - Bridging Communities: Bitcoin in Wrestling & Fan Demands

04:25:40 - Storyline Ideas: Libertarian Manager & Bitcoin Matches

04:30:20 - Closing: Social Media, Zcash Wallet Setup & Privacy Push

Shai Wyborski is one of the three co-authors of the GHOSTDAG paper, and a man who takes pride in his independent thinking and divergent approach to research. As a PhD in quantum cryptography, he's got lots of knowledge to share. But by virtue of his involvement in Bitcoin and Kaspa, he's got stories to tell too.

What does the future of Proof of Work look like? Let's find out!

Time stamps:

00:01:09 - Welcoming Shai Wyborski

00:01:28 - Dig into GhostDAG; most interesting PoW scaling tech.

00:04:44 - Shai's BTC opinions over time

00:05:21 - How Shai spent BTC on "creativity fuel" (undisclosed).

00:06:31 - Disenchantment: Steam drops BTC (congestion/volatility); SegWit "tyranny" births BCH.

00:10:47 - Rejects SoV; BTC as "decentralized vault" for eternal data archiving.

00:15:44 - BTC probs: Low TPS; LN fails.

00:16:15 - Kaspa suite: Beyond TPS/confirmations.

00:16:59 - Tradeoff: High throughput → no audit; pruning for 10-30yr trust.

00:18:40 - GhostDAG multi-ledger: Parallel processing, flexible tx order.

00:19:45 - Miners: Partial info cuts selfish mining/MEV.

00:20:42 - Enables auctions/oracles (Elliot Mabe block-voting).

00:21:40 - Debunks PoW myths: BTC artifacts (congestion for fees).

00:22:15 - Kaspa: Paradigm shift proof; lessons from protocols.

00:23:24 - Flaw: Fast emission + fair launch = whale buyout.

00:23:49 - Fair ≠ community; coercion w/o social contract.

00:25:10 - Whales fund → control; monetary world nature.

00:27:46 - Balance: Incentives, explicit contracts.

00:30:31 - Mining phases: CPU/GPU/ASIC stages; ultra-ASIC decen lock.

00:32:22 - ASIC-friendly: Cheap/low-power scale.

00:32:47 - Emission: Heavy early; ASICs 80-90% pre-retail.

00:34:29 - Full supply lifetime; tail short?00:35:28 - BTC emission extend 2-4x for social good.

00:37:27 - Kaspa whales: 3 hold 6% ($100M), foundation collusion.

00:38:27 - Kaspa emission: 60% in 1.5yrs emulates BTC adjusted for fast adoption.

00:41:16 - Guitar jam & sponsors.SideShift.ai: KYC-free swaps. NoOnes.com: P2P global south, "lions" mission. Bitcoin.com News: global views. LayerTwo Labs: Drivechains, ETH/Zcash sides.

00:46:49 - Kaspa drivechain?; WBTC custody risks.

00:48:33 - Citrea: ZK-rollup BTC DeFi.

00:49:27 - Alts: Quai grant, Kadena parallels.

00:50:47 - Parallel sec dilution.

00:52:03 - Quai: Selfish mining fixes, Monero 28% vuln.

00:53:01 - Monero RandomX ASIC-hostility.

00:54:02 - PoW specialized non-wasteful.

01:00:00 - Myths: Scalable, non-congested, decentralization.

01:15:00 - Casino stifles ingenuity; hype vs depth (IOTA rush).

01:30:00 - Funding: Retail quick vs VC long (Mobileye 20yr $80B).

01:45:00 - Game theory: Mechanism design incentives.

02:00:00 - Kaspa risks: Whale control, docs issues.

07:00:00 - Music: Beatles Sgt. Pepper post-Pet Sounds.

07:15:00 - McCartney bass; prog Floyd/Crimson.07:30:00 - Pet Sounds "God Only Knows" acapella.

07:43:02 - Pop→exp; Helter Skelter metal.

07:45:36 - Metal thrash/extreme; stoner Pantheon I.

07:47:41 - HS Pantera/prog/funk.07:49:51 - Concerts: Aristocrats, AC/DC; Dylan regret.

07:52:39 - Misses: Jethro Tull/Motörhead; Bon Jovi meh.

07:55:16 - Grunge: Nirvana In Utero, Soundgarden.

07:58:11 - Smashing Pumpkins trilogy; Corgan drama.

08:00:00 - Timeless tees; Doors sloppy; Zep Moby Dick.

08:02:40 - Zappa Inca Roads/Stink-Foot.

08:07:19 - AI scans/drones; govt bans.

08:12:08 - Radical: Vault, SoV, ultra-ASIC.

08:14:02 - PoW scalable/non-wasteful.08:15:00 - Fair vs community; casino timing punish.

08:17:40 - Narratives over fundamentals; retail vs VC.

08:21:07 - Record 8h21m+; ramble praise.

08:21:50 - Q&A: Kaspa 10yr alive, adapt.

08:22:24 - Beatles Kaspa? Pruning no.

08:23:44 - Game theory mechanism design.

08:26:09 - Work: Consulting, patents, Tectonic quantum.08:29:23 - Quai edu grant, freelance.

08:31:17 - KAS +3% pump; past dumps.

08:31:58 - Quai minor pump; negative effects.

08:33:34 - First interview 0.15→0.5¢; 13 KAS dons.

08:34:21 - Jam: Theme rock, lag.

08:38:07 8h39m record! Sponsors recap.

08:40:00 - Next interview with Val Venis on Monero/WWF; banter.

Abdel is a Starkware engineer who, over the last 7 years, went from building EIP 1559 on Ethereum to becoming a Bitcoin maximalist who wants ZK STARKs to happen. In this episode, we talk about his journey & some of Bitcoin's cultural issues.

Time stamps:

00:00:59 - Sponsors: Sideshift, Citrea, Bitcoin.com News, LayerTwo Labs, NoOnes.com

00:01:38 - Abdel's unique journey: From Ethereum core dev at ConsenSys to Bitcoin maximalism

00:02:17 - Early Bitcoin curiosity (2011-2012) vs Ethereum's "world computer" appeal

00:03:51 - Fintech background: Working for banks before fighting them

00:04:31 - Always a Bitcoin + Ethereum maxi: Building unstoppable systems

00:06:07 - North Star vs "Nostr": Unstoppable vs compromised systems

00:06:23 - Fintech to DeFi? Payments focus, not advanced trading

00:07:29 - First Ethereum contributions: Smart contracts

00:09:09 - Deep dive: Championing EIP-1559 (fee burn, ultrasound money)

00:11:03 - EIP-1559's governance risks: Changing monetary policy on the fly

00:11:16 - Ethereum's slippery slopes: DAO hard fork to fee burns

00:12:12 - Ethereum as anti-Bitcoin experiment: From colored coins to rollups

00:13:48 - Ethereum Classic hopes; market follows narratives, not fixed supply

00:14:28 - EIP-1559 process: 2+ years of debate vs Bitcoin's immutability

00:15:59 - Boiling frog with Vitalik: Accumulating compromises (trusted setups)

00:18:28 - Ethereum precedents: Premine, PoS migration, rushed upgrades

00:19:14 - Social layer strength: Protects core principles vs nation-states

00:19:41 - Non-tech users in governance: Better than dev-only control

00:22:32 - Educating the social layer: Privacy warnings in Bitcoin tools

00:24:26 - Risks: Bitcoin (tech obsolescence) vs Ethereum (social dilution)

00:26:49 - Bitcoin meetups: Ideology & tech vs Ethereum's builder focus

00:28:00 - Shocking anti-Bitcoin sentiment from Ethereum side

00:29:52 - PoW beauty: External entropy, fair distribution (not Ponzi)

00:31:44 - PoW vs PoS: Tolerating Ethereum's PoS for decentralization

00:34:20 - Bitcoin's privacy crisis: Needs scale + affordability

00:36:43 - Sponsor: Layer2 Labs (Drivechains for sidechains like Zcash fork)

00:38:02 - Sponsor: Citrea (ZK rollup on Bitcoin via BitVM2)

00:40:09 - Citrea drama: Unfair criticism amid filter wars

00:42:40 - Citrea vs Alpen: First-to-market wins (garbled circuits delay)

00:46:01 - Video game analogy: Duke Nukem Forever vs pragmatic launches

00:47:25 - Lesson from Ethereum: Optimistic rollups dominate despite ZK superiority

00:48:56 - Dev events vs mainstream: Bridging tech narratives to plebs

01:10:00 - Fragmentation in Bitcoin community, why plebs dismiss innovation

02:30:00 - Off-topic: Immigration in Europe (Romania/France parallels, economic pressures)

02:38:16 - Bitcoin as catalyst: Inflation from crises drives adoption

02:39:46 - Decentralization as development sign: Small-scale consensus

02:42:11 - New chains start centralized; trust incentives lacking in L2s

02:44:41 - Starkware as bridge to Bitcoin: Pre-existing interest

02:45:57 - Elevator pitch: STARK proofs for Bitcoin (open-source, battle-tested)

02:48:21 - Endgame: Verify STARKs on Bitcoin for programmability + privacy

02:49:52 - Meme magic: One STARK proof is smaller in size than a photo, costs less than a Big Mac, can be verified in a blink

02:52:29 - STARKs vs SNARKs: No trusted setup, quantum-secure, hash-based

02:54:31 - Experiments: Cashu with STARKs (private programmable e-cash)

02:58:37 - Nostr DVMS: Verifiable AI/services in permissionless marketplace

03:01:16 - Cashu origin story: Bar chat with Calle to Jack Dorsey endorsement

03:03:16 - Cashu honesty: Not scaling, but privacy bridge vs custodians

03:06:25 - Nihilism in Bitcoin: Mental gymnastics vs Ethereum's build-first ethos

03:07:48 - Permission culture: Asking nodes for ZK proofs/Lightning channels

03:08:27 - Event split: Dev confs (BTC++) vs narrative fests (BTC Prague)

03:10:29 - Why invest without understanding? Newbie wave acceleration

03:11:23 - Niche value: In-between content bridges extremes

03:13:48 - Who listens matters: Robin Linus' DM is more important than mass views

03:16:07 - Still early days: 16 years in, aim for 1B daily users

03:16:39 - Special word: "Grinta" (grit mindset) for full listeners

03:18:14 - Outro: Thanks & next: Shai on PoW improvements