Hi, I'm Gigi.
I'm a bitcoiner and software engineer, writing words and code for Bitcoin. My first book, 21 Lessons, is one of the most recommended books among bitcoiners. I launched various projects in the bitcoin space and am currently working on my second book, 21 Ways. My main focus is on privacy, security, free software, and education.
Unless otherwise noted, all my writing is published under a permissive creative commons license. Remixes and translations are appreciated.
You can support me via my book / patreon / GitHub / directly.
Thank you.
🙏🧡
Below are some of my selected essays. You can find all essays under /words.
Bitcoin ist... — Bitcoin ist 12 Wörter, verschränkt mit dir. Und doch wird es mehr als 12 Wörter brauchen, um dies zu erläutern. Wenn man ein Dutzend verschiedene Leute fragt, was Bitcoin ist, bekommt man zwei Dutzend verschiedene
Dear Crypto & Fiat Bros - An open letter to the confused and dismissive. — It should be obvious by now, but I'm afraid I'll have to spell it out anyway: Bitcoin, not blockchain. Bitcoin, not crypto. Bitcoin, not distributed ledger technology. Bitcoin, not DeFi. Bitcoin, not Web3. Bitcoin, not
Bitcoin Is Digital Scarcity — We should treat computers as fancy telephones, whose purpose is to connect people. Information is alienated experience. Information is not something that exists. Indeed, computers don’t really exist, exactly; they’re only subject to human interpretation.
Cryptography is Not Enough - A long(ish) Speech on Paradoxes and Antinomies — Warning: This presentation contains example private keys. Do not import any sample keys or send bitcoins to any of the associated addresses; you will lose your money. Watch on YouTube This talk was originally given
The Words We Use In Bitcoin - Words, Language, Terminology, and Linguistic Attacks — It can’t be said often enough: Bitcoin is confusing. However, it’s not complicated like a Rube Goldberg machine is complicated. It’s just very foreign and thus very misunderstood—it is a completely new thing. “There’s nothing
Inalienable Property Rights - The Law, Language, Money, and Morality of Bitcoin — If speech and the free exercise thereof is sacred, then Bitcoin is sacred, because all that Bitcoin requires of you is to think and to speak.
The Freedom of Value - How Value-for-Value Fixes the Monetization of Information — The internet has a problem. Few people know that this problem exists, but hey, that's the nature of serious, non-obvious problems: they are invisible until they aren't. The problem with the internet is that information
Magic Internet Money - The Magical Origins of Bitcoin — Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. Arthur C. Clarke Technology is a marvelous thing. We are so quick to accept things as they stand, rarely taking the time to reflect on how magical
Implications of Outlawing Bitcoin — Bitcoin is complicated and scary. Just like fire, electricity, computers, and every other ground-breaking invention before it. It is complicated and scary because most people do not understand how it works and why it might
Bitcoin Is An Idea — Don’t worry about people stealing an idea. If it’s original, you will have to ram it down their throats. Howard H. Aiken There’s no flesh or blood within this cloak to kill. There’s only an
Bitcoin Is Time — One luminary clock against the sky Proclaimed the time was neither wrong nor right. Robert Frost, Acquainted with the Night (1928) Time is still the great mystery to us. It is no more than a concept;
Dear Family, Dear Friends - A letter to all of you who still have no bitcoin. — I am writing this letter because I am convinced of two things: (1) our current money is fundamentally broken (2) using superior money will benefit you in particular — and society in general — in
Dear Bitcoiners - An optimistic letter to friends and foes around the globe. — The madness of this world became obvious in an instant. Everything is changing way faster than most of us ever imagined — but I’m not worried. To the contrary, I’m weirdly optimistic — because of
The Rise of the Sovereign Individual - How power is re-aligning itself in an internet-native world — Not too long ago, the internet was a fringe phenomenon. Very few people saw the benefits of a global communications network. Even fewer people had the vision and the foresight to see what it might
Proof of Life - Why Bitcoin is a Living Organism — The definition of life has been a challenge for scientists and philosophers alike. While many definitions have been put forward, what precisely differentiates the living from the non-living remains elusive. Are viruses alive? DNA molecules?
