As a seasoned researcher with a keen interest in the fascinating world of blockchain and cryptocurrencies, I’ve found myself deeply engrossed in the latest HBO documentary titled ‘Money Electric: The Bitcoin Mystery.’ While the film presents Peter Todd as the elusive Satoshi Nakamoto, I must admit that I find the theory less convincing than a Bitcoin whale mistaking a penny for a valuable gem.
In a documentary on HBO titled ‘Money Electric: The Bitcoin Enigma’, it was suggested that Canadian Bitcoin programmer Peter Todd might be the elusive figure behind Bitcoin, known as Satoshi Nakamoto. However, the cryptocurrency community remains unconvinced by this claim.
As an analyst, I’ve recently examined a captivating documentary produced by Cullen Hobak, which presents compelling supposed evidence spanning 100 minutes. The documentary strongly suggests that the enigmatic figure known as Todd, a pioneer in the cryptocurrency realm, is the hidden creator of Bitcoin.
For quite some time now, Todd has served as a dedicated Bitcoin Core Developer, making significant contributions within the digital currency sector. His fascination with cryptography and blockchain technologies began during his youth, sparking his passion for these subjects during his teenage years.
His first recorded involvement with Bitcoin can be traced back to the end of the 2000s. At that time, he was only 23 years old and actively participating in the cryptocurrency community, not long after the release of the Bitcoin whitepaper in 2008.
Back in 2019, Todd shared on the What Bitcoin Did podcast that he started conversing with pioneers of Bitcoin such as Hal Finney and Adam Back (the creator of Hashcash) when he was roughly fifteen years old. These early conversations significantly influenced his future involvement in the Bitcoin realm and the broader field of cryptography.
2018 saw Todd disclose that prior to his involvement with Bitcoin, he had experience in two different fields. He was previously employed as a designer of analog electronics and also worked for a startup focusing on geophysics.
In July 2014, he began his role as a Bitcoin Core Developer at Coinkite, progressing to take on significant positions such as Chief Scientist for projects like Mastercoin and Dark Wallet later on.
Why is Todd Satoshi?
The key reason behind naming Todd stems from a collection of circumstantial evidence pieced together by Hobak, one of which is his cryptic online posts — notably one where he referred to himself as “the world’s leading expert on how to sacrifice your Bitcoins” — which is interpreted as veiled admissions, suggesting he may have destroyed access to the estimated 1.1 million BTC attributed to Nakamoto.
The documentary added more intrigue to the debate as it suggested that Todd had once mistakenly posted messages under Satoshi’s account on the BitcoinTalk forum back in 2010. This supposed error was said to have been made by him.
Moreover, it’s worth noting that Todd is often recognized for championing Replace-by-Fee (RBF), a contentious issue within the community. This concept aimed to enable swapping an earlier transaction with a new one that offers a higher fee rate. The documentary hinted at this idea being advanced by someone deeply versed in Bitcoin’s initial programming—much like Nakamoto might be.
Community debunks claims, and so does Todd
In spite of these theories circulating about his identity, Todd has consistently maintained that he is not Nakamoto, even prior to the documentary’s release. More recently, on October 8th, in response to a comment asking him to address HBO’s claim, the developer clearly stated, “I am not Satoshi.
I’m not Satoshi.
— Peter Todd (@peterktodd) October 8, 2024
The crypto community was quick to debunk HBO’s claims. Web3 researcher Pix pointed out several key points where the documentary went wrong.
Initially, it was observed that as of 2008, Peter Todd had not yet completed his studies in fine arts and had no affiliation with the field of cryptography. Given this, it seemed improbable for him to have adopted a pseudonym such as Satoshi Nakamoto, which is associated with Bitcoin’s creation.
Afterward, Pix contested HBO’s assertion regarding the 2010 BitcoinTalk post, which implied Todd unintentionally exposed himself as Satoshi due to failing to change accounts. Pix proposed that a subsequent post published 13 hours later was more plausibly just a casual comment instead of proof of an overlooked account switch.
Additionally, Pix clarified the Role-Based Function (RBF) connection, stating that Todd introduced RBF in 2014, long after Satoshi had departed from the cryptocurrency world. The notion proposed by HBO that this feature was intentionally designed by Satoshi prior to its development was deemed an exaggerated assumption.
In the end, Pix explained that Todd’s comment about “sacrificing bitcoins” was actually a humorous reference to blockchain security, not an acknowledgement of destroying access to Satoshi’s 1.1 million BTC. According to Pix, this important detail has been misconstrued, adding more doubt to HBO’s allegations.
Among other non-believers was CryptoQuant researcher Ki Young Ju, who labeled the documentary “disgusting.”
It’s puzzling that they arrived at this decision, given that most Bitcoin specialists seem to hold a different opinion,” Ju wrote in an Oct. 9 post.
BitMEX Research voiced their skepticism, labeling the evidence provided by HBO as “undoubtedly absurd” and expressing no grounds for believing that Peter Todd could be Satoshi.
Notable individuals associated with the community, such as Adam Back – a figure known for his early involvement with Bitcoin – and the anonymous figure known as Satoshi themselves, did not endorse this theory. In fact, when asked about it in a documentary, Back declined to add fuel to the speculation and simply clarified that no one has definitively identified who Satoshi truly is.
Other market observers called the conclusion nothing but sloppy journalism.
I like Peter Todd. I wish he was Satoshi. But this is just sloppy joirnalism.
— Beanie (@beaniemaxi) October 9, 2024
A surprise for Polymarket bettors
On the widely-used prediction market platform, Polymarket, there were betting odds available for who HBO’s documentary might reveal as Satoshi Nakamoto. Initially, however, Peter Todd was not among the options to wager on.
Initially, those who placed bets on the identity of Bitcoin’s creators mainly concentrated on individuals such as Nick Szabo and Len Sassaman, two people often suggested to be the creators of Bitcoin. Additionally, there were other potential candidates like Hal Finney and Elon Musk among others.
Leaving out this detail further demonstrates just how astonishing and generally disbelieved the documentary’s assertion concerning Todd turned out to be.
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2024-10-09 09:49