Podcast
Protocol Pulse
Hosted by protocolpulse · EN
Protocol Pulse - Where Bitcoin Leaders Speak Truth
Bringing you unfiltered conversations with the pioneers shaping decentralization. We attend every major Web3 conference hunting down the thought leaders, builders, and visionaries who are actually moving the needle.
From Bitcoin conferences to DeFi summits, we break down the news that matters and capture the stories mainstream media won’t tell. Our team gets exclusive access to industry legends, emerging projects, and the minds behind the technology revolutionizing finance and freedom.
Expect raw interviews, real insights, and zero corporate fluff. We’re freedom maxis with a cause (and possibly too much caffeine) bringing you the pulse of the protocol layer.
Whether you’re a seasoned crypto veteran or just getting started in Web3, Protocol Pulse delivers the conversations and analysis you need to stay ahead of the curve.
New episodes weekly.
Follow us:
X: @ProtocolPulseHQ
10episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Bitcoin 2025 Las Vegas: Chef Pete Drops a Powerful Message
Mar 1300:15:41Tap to summarizeRecorded at Bitcoin 2025 in Las Vegas, this throwback interview with Chef Pete is one of the most powerful conversations from the event. In this sit-down, @MattyIceSensei and Chef Pete dive into Bitcoin, freedom, personal sovereignty, health, truth, and the bigger cultural shift happening around the world. It is honest, energizing, and packed with the kind of perspective that made Bitcoin 2025 such a memorable moment in Vegas. If you were there, this will take you right back. If you missed it, this is exactly why the Bitcoin conference experience is so special. Watch, share, and get ready for what’s next at Bitcoin Vegas. Drop a comment with your biggest takeaway from the interview. #Bitcoin #Bitcoin2025 #BitcoinVegas #LasVegas #ChefPete #BTC #CryptoConference #MattyIceSensei
Transcribe →Why $1 Trillion in Stablecoins Will Centralize Crypto | Quai Network's Energy-Backed Proposal
Dec 1600:25:02Tap to summarizeJust sat down with Alan Orwick from Quai Network at Mining Disrupt 2025 in Texas to discuss one of the most controversial takes in crypto right now: the stablecoin centralization problem. 🔥 KEY TOPICS COVERED: Why $1 trillion in stablecoins by 2030 threatens crypto decentralizationHow Quai uses ENERGY as a unit of account instead of fiat currencyThe two-token model: QUAI (store of value) + QI (energy-backed medium of exchange)Why Bitcoin hasn't achieved Satoshi's peer-to-peer cash vision yetGPU mining as the most grassroots distribution method for cryptoSolo mining without pools - how Quai solved Bitcoin's centralization problemBuilding trustless Bitcoin bridges using zero-knowledge proofsThe connection between energy production and national prosperity Alan breaks down how Quai Network is rethinking proof-of-work by tying cryptocurrency directly to electricity consumption, creating what might be the first true "energy-based money" since Bitcoin. We also dive into: ✅ The Bitcoin knots vs core debate ✅ OP_CAT and Bitcoin programmability ✅ Why Lightning Network can't scale to everyone ✅ Using GPU networks for ZK-proof generation ✅ The future of decentralized bridging This is a technical deep-dive for anyone interested in proof-of-work innovation, energy economics, and the future of decentralized money. 🎙️ Recorded at Mining Disrupt 2025, Texas 💬 Follow the conversation and share your thoughts below #Bitcoin #Crypto #ProofOfWork #QuaiNetwork #Stablecoins #EnergyMoney #GPUMining #Decentralization #MiningDisrupt
Transcribe →A Surgeon Reveals the AI Prediction That Killed His 401k
Dec 1300:17:05Tap to summarizeIn this video: We are live from Mining Disrupt 2025 in Texas with Gray, a surgeon who went down the Bitcoin rabbit hole less than a year ago. In this eye-opening conversation, we break down why a police officer in 1969 could buy a home with one year's salary, while today's doctors struggle to build wealth. Gray reveals the shocking results he got when he asked an AI to calculate the real future value of his 401k adjusted for inflation—and why the answer devastated him. We discuss the "Cantillon Effect," why the cost of living is crushing the middle class, and how Bitcoin mining offers the only escape from a broken monetary system. Topics Covered: The 1969 Housing Math: Why your parents had it easier. The AI Experiment: What Artificial Intelligence says about your retirement savings. The Cantillon Effect: Where the $19,000 "missing" printed dollars went. Austrian Economics: Why price controls and socialism fail human nature. Orange Pilling the Next Gen: How Gray’s daughters are learning about nodes and mining. #Bitcoin #MiningDisrupt2025 #Inflation #AustrianEconomics #HousingMarket #Recession #Crypto #FinancialFreedom
Transcribe →Is AI Killing Industrial Mining? The Return of Home Bitcoin Mining w/ Solo Satoshi
Dec 100:08:25Tap to summarizeAre the biggest Bitcoin miners leaving the network to chase AI profits? Live from Mining Disrupt 2025 in Texas, Matty Ice (Consensus Protocol) sits down with Matt, CEO of Solo Satoshi, to discuss the shifting landscape of the mining industry. As industrial giants pivot toward High-Performance Computing (HPC) and AI for higher payouts, a massive opportunity is opening up for the little guy. In this episode, we dive into: The AI Pivot: Why massive mining facilities are switching off SHA-256 and switching on AI compute. The Bitax Revolution: How open-source, low-power devices are bringing the "garage ethos" back to Bitcoin. Decentralization: Why home mining is the ultimate defense against network centralization. Heat Repurposing: The future of heating your home while securing the network. If you miss the days when you could mine on a GPU and feel like a part of the network, this conversation is for you. #BitcoinMining #SoloSatoshi #HomeMining #MiningDisrupt2025 #Cypherpunkd #Bitax
Transcribe →Bitcoin ETFs, centralization risk, and the road to real decentralization | Aly Madhavji
Sep 2200:37:52Tap to summarizeWe sat down at Bitcoin 2025 with Aly Madhavji, Managing Partner at Blockchain Founders Fund, to unpack the tension between a decentralized vision and the new wave of centralized ETF custody. Aly explains why hyper centralization raises seizure risk, how proof of reserves should evolve, and why shorting dynamics get easier when institutions hold the keys. We also dig into lessons from the gold bans of the past, the US policy sentiment shift, and why builders should target real users instead of casino token plays. What you will learn: • Bitcoin ETFs, custodians, and the centralization trap • Why government policy shifts matter, with parallels to gold restrictions • How institutional lending can fuel short pressure • Decentralization that users do not notice, like Roundtable’s Miss World app and on-chain media • Real world impact, USDC remittances and microfinance in emerging markets • BFF’s early stage thesis, 10 year fund horizon, and hands-on help for founders • Founder playbook, 11 30 90 pitch, how to get fast feedback, and spend investor money responsibly Featured guest: Aly Madhavji, Blockchain Founders Fund, CryptoKnights on Prime Video, UN consultant, Senior Blockchain Fellow at INSEAD. Subscribe for more interviews with investors, builders, and policy voices shaping the next chapter of Bitcoin and open finance.
Transcribe →Bitcoin Billionaire Loses Hard Drive in Landfill
Sep 300:21:37Tap to summarizeJames Howells, the Welsh engineer who famously lost 8,000 Bitcoin (now worth nearly a billion dollars) in a Newport landfill in 2013, joins us at Bitcoin 2025 to share his incredible story. For over a decade, he's fought a relentless legal battle against the local council to recover his hard drive. But after multiple court losses and a rejected offer to give them 10% of the coins, he's taking a different approach. James is now tokenizing 21% of the wallet's value into ordinals and selling them to the public to raise money to buy the landfill site outright. He's assembled a world-class team of experts, from excavation specialists to AI and drone technicians, to meticulously search the massive dump for his hard drive. This isn't just a treasure hunt—it's a high-stakes, real-world saga that's being turned into a global documentary series. From the financial crisis that led him to Bitcoin to the "Napster for money" philosophy that drove his early mining, James reveals why he’s never given up. He explains how the data on the drive can be recovered, why Newport Council’s environmental excuses are a farce, and how the crypto community can help him pull off the biggest digital treasure hunt in history.
Transcribe →How Bitcoiners Get A Second Passport: El Salvador, Portugal & Anarchy | Katie The Russian
Aug 2700:16:38Tap to summarizeKatie "the Russian" shares her incredible journey from professional sailor in Siberia to Bitcoin entrepreneur and founder of Plan B Passport (recently acquired by CitizenX). In this deep conversation at Bitcoin 2025, we explore how Bitcoin's low time preference mindset transformed not just her business approach, but her entire life philosophy. 🔑 KEY TOPICS COVERED: • How Plan B Passport got acquired by CitizenX and Katie's new role as CMO • Why Bitcoin creates low time preference thinking that improves every area of life • The cultural differences between Russia and America that shaped her worldview • Why she believes in anarchism as "no rulers, not no rules" • The top citizenship by investment programs for Bitcoiners: - El Salvador: $1M donation for quick Bitcoin-native citizenship - Portugal: €500K investment that lets you stack Bitcoin while gaining citizenship - Antigua: $270K donation with full Bitcoin payment options • How nation-states are now competing for Bitcoiners and their capital • Practical advice for establishing Plan B options through ancestral ties and residency Katie's story perfectly illustrates the Sovereign Individual thesis in action - how Bitcoin enables geographic arbitrage and forces governments to compete for citizens rather than simply extract from them. Whether you're curious about second citizenship, inspired by entrepreneurial journeys, or interested in how Bitcoin philosophy affects real-world decisions, this conversation delivers incredible insights from someone living the decentralized future today. 🔗 CONNECT WITH KATIE: Twitter: @PlanBpassport Recorded live at The Bitcoin Conference 2025 in Las Vegas #Bitcoin #SecondCitizenship #Entrepreneurship #SovereignIndividual #PlanB #CitizenX #Bitcoin2025
Transcribe →“Bitcoin Will Not Save You" Samuel Armes on Florida Politics, Maxis & CBDCs | BitcoinDay Tampa
Aug 800:14:50Tap to summarizeAt Bitcoin Day Tampa, we sat down with Samuel Armes — part freedom fighter, part legislative architect — to unpack the raw truth about Bitcoin adoption, political reality, and the fight against CBDCs in Florida. From working with Special Operations Command on shutting down Bitcoin, to drafting America’s first state-level CBDC ban, Armes has been on the inside shaping Bitcoin-friendly policy. In this unfiltered conversation, he calls out Maxi blindspots, explains why the Florida Strategic Bitcoin Reserve failed, and delivers a sobering message: “Bitcoin will not save you. Castles fall. Community is what matters.” These are the conversations that matter. Full spectrum. All angles. Timestamps: 00:00 Intro – Bitcoin Day Tampa 01:42 Florida politics & Bitcoin adoption 08:10 The Strategic Bitcoin Reserve 14:25 Building political leverage 21:40 Bitcoin Maxis & community building 29:00 CBDCs & the fight ahead Connect with Bitcoin Day 🌐 Website: bitcoinday.io 🐦 Twitter: @BitcoinDayio
Transcribe →This Bitcoin Life Insurance Company Just Raised $40M vs Traditional Life Insurance SCAM
Jul 2800:32:01Tap to summarizeIs traditional life insurance a scam? With the dollar's purchasing power plummeting, saving for the future in fiat currency feels like a losing game. In this episode, we sit down with Zac Townsend, the co-founder and CEO of Meanwhile, the world's first life insurance company fully denominated in Bitcoin. Backed by Sam Altman and other Silicon Valley heavyweights, Meanwhile is a fully regulated entity in Bermuda, offering a simple, powerful financial tool to build intergenerational wealth on a Bitcoin standard. Zac breaks down how their whole life policies work, allowing you to pay premiums and receive claims entirely in BTC. We dive into the massive tax advantages, like borrowing against your policy's value tax-free without triggering capital gains. Zac also explains how they generate safe, sustainable yield, contrasting their long-term, risk-averse model with the catastrophic failures of companies like BlockFi and Celsius. If you're looking for a way to secure your family's future, manage your Bitcoin legacy, and legally sidestep capital gains tax, this is a must-watch conversation. 🔗 Check out Meanwhile: https://meanwhile.bm ⏰ Timestamps: 00:00 - Meet the CEO of the World's First Bitcoin Life Insurance Company 02:15 - Why Traditional Life Insurance is a "Ponzi Scheme" 05:30 - How a Bitcoin Whole Life Policy Actually Works 08:45 - The TAX-FREE Bitcoin Wealth Hack You Need to Know 12:10 - Solving Bitcoin Inheritance & Custody Risk 15:00 - How Meanwhile Generates Safe 3% Yield (And Avoids BlockFi's Mistakes) 19:22 - The Vision: Banking the Unbanked on a Bitcoin Standard #Bitcoin #LifeInsurance #Wealth #Crypto #Taxes #Meanwhile Disclaimer: This video is for informational purposes only and is not financial or legal advice. Please consult with a professional before making any financial decisions.
Transcribe →Apex Predator: Gary Cardone’s Ultimate Bitcoin Conviction & Generational Wealth Strategy
Jul 2500:22:50Tap to summarizeGary Cardone unleashes one of the most raw and compelling Bitcoin interviews you'll ever hear. From selling $70M/year businesses to go all-in on Bitcoin, to calling it the “apex predator of assets,” Gary breaks down exactly why this moment in history is the opportunity of a lifetime. He reveals: – Why Bitcoin is like a 27-year-old redhead that never ages – How Wall Street and fintech are broken beyond repair – Why most Bitcoiners stopped buying at $30—and why that's a massive mistake – The truth about work ethic scarcity vs. asset scarcity – His blunt take on Grant Cardone, Michael Saylor, and institutional adoption – Why billionaires will buy more than one Bitcoin—if they’re not too late This isn’t your typical crypto hype. It’s hard money, legacy disruption, and multigenerational thinking through the eyes of a seasoned energy trader and entrepreneur. Chapters: 0:00 The Bitcoin Redhead Analogy 3:17 Selling $70M Companies for BTC 7:45 Visa, MasterCard, & the Plumbing Problem 12:02 Apex Predator Conviction 16:40 Work Ethic vs. Speculation 21:15 Why Saylor Gets It 24:00 Billionaires & Bitcoin: The Real Math 29:10 25 Hours That Can Change Your Life 📚 Books Mentioned: The Price of Tomorrow, The Big Print, The White Paper video on YT 🎙️ Interviewed at: Bitcoin Day Tampa 2025 #Bitcoin #GaryCardone #HardMoney #MichaelSaylor #GenerationalWealth #CryptoInvesting
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