Podcast
What Bitcoin Did
Hosted by Danny Knowles · EN
What Bitcoin Did unpacks Bitcoin’s role in reshaping money, freedom, and the future of finance.
72episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
AI Is About to Split Society in Two | Zack Shapiro
Yesterday01:14:38Summary ready“The people who are truly productive are going to be on a rocket ship.” AI is about to split society in two: those who learn to command it and those whose value it destroys. Zack Shapiro, Head of Policy at the Bitcoin Policy Institute, explains why AI could dismantle the traditional white-collar career ladder while creating millions of millionaires. He argues that judgment, agency and decisive thinking will become exponentially more valuable, while simply working hard may no longer be enough. We discuss why most people are using AI incorrectly, how it could transform law and business, whether mass unemployment and universal basic income are coming, and why Zack believes there is a 15% chance AI could wipe out humanity. We also explore the battle between technological abundance and authoritarian control, why autonomous AI agents may naturally choose Bitcoin, the future of the CLARITY Act, protections for Bitcoin developers, and whether America will ever meaningfully build a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve. THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS: LEDN SWAN ANCHORWATCH BLOCKWARE BITKEY CAPE FOLLOW: Danny Knowles: https://x.com/_DannyKnowles Zack Shapiro: https://x.com/zackbshapiro
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The $1 Trillion Bitcoin Loan Market Is Coming | Mauricio Di Bartolomeo
5d ago01:16:54Summary ready“There’s no balance sheet in the world that can cough up a trillion dollars.” In this episode, Mauricio Di Bartolomeo explains why he believes Bitcoin-backed loans could become a $1 trillion market within the next five to ten years, and why traditional lender balance sheets cannot finance that growth alone. Mauricio breaks down Ledn’s $188 million Bitcoin-backed securitisation, the significance of its investment-grade senior notes, and how institutional capital could transform Bitcoin lending into a global credit market. He also explains partial liquidations, auto top up, tokenised gold and the potential for hybrid Bitcoin-and-gold collateral. The conversation also explores the hidden risks behind “no-liquidation” loans, why cheaper borrowing can conceal dangerous counterparty risk, and whether parts of the industry are repeating the mistakes that preceded the last crypto credit collapse. We also get into the ongoing changes in Venezuela following Maduro’s capture, the devastation caused by the La Guaira earthquakes, and why he believes the country may finally have an opportunity to rebuild. THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS: LEDN SWAN ANCHORWATCH BLOCKWARE BITKEY CAPE FOLLOW: Danny Knowles: https://x.com/_DannyKnowles Mauricio Di Bartolomeo: https://x.com/cryptonomista
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The Data Says Bitcoin’s Bottom Is Already In | Mitchell Askew & John Haar
1w ago01:28:18Summary ready“I would give myself 95% confidence that the bottom is in.” Mitchell Askew and John Haar are on the show to get into whether Bitcoin’s price bottom is already in, and why this drawdown looks different. In this episode we discuss the disconnect between record global liquidity and a Bitcoin price that has fallen 50%, the selling by OG holders, miners pivoting toward AI, and the potentially self-fulfilling nature of the four-year cycle. Selling pressure is becoming exhausted and we're now facing time pain, not price pain. We also get into AI stealing Bitcoin’s bull run, what could force capital rotation, the future of Strategy and MetaPlanet, why blow-off tops and 75% drawdowns may be disappearing, and how Bitcoin mining is changing as major operators move into AI. *Note, this was recorded before the recent Coldcard vulnerability. For more info watch this… https://youtu.be/rf-9rf93OpE THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS: LEDN SWAN ANCHORWATCH BLOCKWARE BITKEY CAPE FOLLOW: Danny Knowles: https://x.com/_DannyKnowles Mitchell Askew: https://x.com/MitchellAskew John Haar: https://x.com/jhaarblockware
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The Most Bullish Thing About Bitcoin | Alex Thorn
1w ago01:20:07Summary ready“Who is left now that wants to sell at $65K?” Bitcoin has gone through the price pain. Now comes the time pain. Alex Thorn, Head of Firmwide Research at Galaxy, is back on the show in New York to get into whether Bitcoin has already found its bottom, why sellers may finally be exhausted, and how the next rally could begin before the wider market notices. We discuss the on-chain signals around $58K, the changing shape of Bitcoin’s market cycles, and how the enormous debt funding the AI boom could revive the currency-debasement narrative and put Bitcoin back at the centre of the market. We also get into whether a court can declare dormant Bitcoin “abandoned,” the attempt to claim legal ownership of coins linked to Satoshi, the quantum-computing risk, government control of superintelligent AI, and the last-minute fight to protect self-custody through the CLARITY Act. *Note, this was recorded before the recent Coldcard vulnerability. For more info watch this… https://youtu.be/rf-9rf93OpE THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS: LEDN SWAN ANCHORWATCH BLOCKWARE BITKEY CAPE FOLLOW: Danny Knowles: https://x.com/_DannyKnowles Alex Thorn: https://x.com/intangiblecoins
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The Fed Can’t Let the AI Bubble Burst | Luke Gromen
2w ago01:24:32Summary ready“The companies are bubbles, but I don’t think the technology is a bubble.” Luke Gromen is back on the show to explain why the debt-fuelled AI boom may have become too big to fail, why slowing investment and valuations could threaten the wider financial system, and how even a small move from the Fed could trigger the unwind. Luke also explains why he still hasn’t bought back most of the Bitcoin he sold near $96,000. He believes Bitcoin could trade lower alongside tech over the next few months, but his long-term thesis has not changed: America’s fiscal position cannot be fixed without significant currency devaluation, and the Fed will eventually be forced to print. We also discuss Kevin Warsh’s attempt to establish his inflation-fighting credibility, the return of Hamiltonian economics, tariffs and reshoring, why long-term bondholders may be destroyed in real terms, the growing divide between Wall Street and the rest of America, and whether the country can remain the world’s dominant superpower. THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS: LEDN SWAN ANCHORWATCH BLOCKWARE BITKEY CAPE FOLLOW: Danny Knowles: https://x.com/\_DannyKnowles Luke Gromen: https://x.com/LukeGromen
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EMERGENCY BITCOIN UPDATE: Coldcard Attack Explained | Rob Hamilton
2w ago00:42:18Summary ready“This is as code red as it can get for Bitcoin self-custody.” Rob Hamilton joins me for an emergency episode on the catastrophic Coldcard entropy bug that has exposed Bitcoin held in wallets generated on affected firmware. A firmware change introduced in 2021 prevented Coldcard devices from generating the level of randomness users believed they were getting. The result is that attackers may be able to reconstruct seed phrases and drain wallets, even when the device was air-gapped and the seed words never touched the internet. Rob explains which Coldcard models and setups are at risk, why updating the firmware does not repair an existing vulnerable seed, and what affected users need to do now. We also get into the risks facing single-signature and multisig wallets, whether passphrases and independently generated entropy provide protection, how attackers are finding and sweeping vulnerable wallets, and the role AI may have played in discovering the bug. THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS: LEDN SWAN ANCHORWATCH BLOCKWARE BITKEY CAPE FOLLOW: Danny Knowles: https://x.com/_DannyKnowles Rob Hamilton: https://x.com/Rob1Ham
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Jack Mallers: Why I Left Twenty One
2w ago01:44:44Summary ready“The company that I co-founded and wanted to build and the company Twenty One was becoming were no longer the same.” Jack Mallers is back on the show for his first interview since stepping down as CEO of Twenty One Capital. Jack explains why he walked away from the Bitcoin treasury company he built with Tether and took public on the New York Stock Exchange. We discuss where his vision began to diverge from the board’s, why merging Strike into Twenty One was never part of the original plan, and the expectations he regrets setting. We also get into the AI capex bubble and why he thinks it will end in money printing, whether the Magnificent Seven are becoming too big to fail, why gold ran while Bitcoin didn’t, whether China is quietly mining Bitcoin, and why Jack believes Bitcoin’s next bull market will finally be a real one. THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS: LEDN SWAN ANCHORWATCH BLOCKWARE BITKEY CAPE FOLLOW: Danny Knowles: https://x.com/_DannyKnowles Jack Mallers: https://x.com/jackmallers
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Bringing Back The Bitcoin Bull Market | Cory Klippsten
3w ago01:09:51Summary ready“We don’t need a new narrative. We just need to buy the bear, turn it around and smash it.” Cory Klippsten is back on the show to explain why Bitcoin’s last bull market failed to deliver, why institutional adoption created weak hands rather than conviction, and why the next major move depends on bringing a new wave of people into Bitcoin. In this episode, we discuss Swan’s campaign to bring the energy back to Bitcoin, the return of Café Bitcoin, 50 Days for Freedom and lower buying fees. Cory explains why ETFs made Bitcoin easier to buy but also easier to sell, why real on-chain holders ultimately set the floor, and why he believes the bear market may be close to its end. We also get into Bitcoin’s adoption problem, the battle for monetary independence, why altcoins have lost the fight to become money, and the risks of Bitcoin treasury companies and leveraged Bitcoin equities. THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS: LEDN SWAN ANCHORWATCH BLOCKWARE BITKEY CAPE FOLLOW: Danny Knowles: https://x.com/_DannyKnowles Cory Klippsten: https://x.com/CorySwan
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The Bitcoin Bear Market Is a Survival Test | Matt Odell
3w ago01:57:14Summary ready“Bear markets are actually more about survival.” Matt Odell is back on the show to explain why Bitcoin bear markets grind people down, why the fundamentals have not changed, and why he has never been more bullish on Bitcoin. In this episode, we discuss Jack Mallers stepping down from XXI, the risks of Bitcoin treasury companies, and why profitable businesses should save in Bitcoin rather than make financial engineering the product. We also get into Nostr’s failure to replace X, the continued need for open identity and private communications, and how open-source AI could make Bitcoin easier to use. Matt explains why AI agents will need permissionless money, why Lightning matters for privacy, and why strong families and local communities will become more important in an increasingly centralised world. THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS: ANCHORWATCH BLOCKWARE LEDN BITKEY SWAN CAPE FOLLOW: Danny Knowles: https://x.com/_DannyKnowles or https://primal.net/danny Matt Odell: https://x.com/ODELLXYZ or https://primal.net/odell Citadel Wire: https://citadelwire.com/
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Global Liquidity Has Peaked: What Happens to Bitcoin? | Michael Howell
3w ago01:05:17Summary ready“Cycles have no respect for trends.” Michael Howell is on the show to explain why global liquidity, not Bitcoin’s four-year cycle, is the force driving Bitcoin, gold and global markets. Michael argues that the liquidity cycle has already peaked and may not bottom until the second half of 2027. He warns that tighter liquidity could create further downside before the next major monetary expansion begins. We get into the five-to-six-year debt refinancing cycle, why central banks are ultimately forced to keep supplying liquidity, China’s influence on the gold market, the growing debt maturity wall, and why the “great debasement” of Western currencies may still lie ahead. THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS: ANCHORWATCH BLOCKWARE LEDN BITKEY SWAN CAPE FOLLOW: Danny Knowles: https://x.com/_DannyKnowles or https://primal.net/danny Michael Howell: https://substack.com/@capitalwars
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