How I quit my PhD and went full-time bitcoin

Not Dr. Ryan X. CharlesSoftware Engineer

@ryanxcharles

Exponential Hash Rate (2011)

@ryanxcharles

GH/s

March 4, 2011

January 3, 2009

source: blockchain.info

Exponential Hash Rate (2014)

@ryanxcharles

GH/s

March 4, 2011

March 4, 2014

January 3, 2009

source: blockchain.info

Exponential Price (2011)

@ryanxcharlessource: bitcoincharts.com

Exponential Price (2014)

@ryanxcharlessource: bitcoincharts.com

Why Bitcoin is Exploding

@ryanxcharles

The Forces that Monetize Bitcoin

1. Intrinsic Value2. First-Mover3. Network Effect4. Self-Interest of Bitcoiners

@ryanxcharles

Intrinsic Value (1/4)

Internet Gold delocalized gold intangible currency with no trust requirement and a

limited supply decentralized ledger with limited space

Fills a niche Irreversible digital payments

Cool@ryanxcharles

First-Mover Advantage (2/4)

Bitcoin was first Altcoins are not sufficiently better to

overcome bitcoins momentum

@ryanxcharles

Network Effect (3/4)

Win/win The more people that use it, the better for

all of us

@ryanxcharles

Self-Interest of Bitcoiners (4/4)

All the problems are solvable pirateat40 ponzi scheme Mt. Gox bankruptcy blockchain forks (2010, 2013) hacked websites, stolen bitcoin

transaction malleability ...bumps in the road

@ryanxcharles

Implications (1/2)

Robin Hansons Economic Singularity Technology that significantly increases human

productivity in a short period of time Bitcoin:

Technological innovation Encourages productivity Happens extremely rapidly (~10 years)

Bitcoin is the Economic Singularity@ryanxcharles

Implications (2/2)

New cryptofinancial system Bitcoin at the base Wallets (Bitcoin Core, blockchain.info, etc.) Payment processors (BitPay, Coinbase, etc.) ...etc.

Fiat currency collapse Dollars, euros, pesos, etc., gone

Short period of time, ~10 yr Internet is already here - ideas spread faster

@ryanxcharles

My Story

@ryanxcharles

PhD

Upper limit on TeV gamma-ray flux from dark matter annihilation in dwarf galaxies

Wash U, 2007 - 2013@ryanxcharles

Interest

@ryanxcharles

Why No PhD

Opportunity Cost Bitcoin > PhD New industry

Academia Sucks No jobs Low pay Giant bubble

@ryanxcharles

PhD -> Panama -> BitPay

@ryanxcharles

What Im Doing

@ryanxcharles

BitPay Open-Source

@ryanxcharles

Bitcore Team

@ryanxcharles

Jeff Garzik Stephen Pair Juan Ignacio Sosa Lopez Manuel Aroz Matias Alejo Garcia Mario Colque Gustavo Maximiliano Cortez Ryan X. Charles

HT: Stefan Thomas (bitcoin-js) BitPay Argentina

Principles of Cryptofinance

Voluntary Solve problems without threatening people

Decentralized Dont have central points of failure

Open-source Anybody can read, copy, extend

@ryanxcharles

Goals

Privacy Blockchain is public Leaks about your addresses can reveal private info

Security Easy for keys to be stolen Malware Hacked websites

@ryanxcharles

Privacy 1/4: Mixing

Put bitcoins into common pool Relies on central party

@ryanxcharles

Privacy 2/4: CoinJoin

Mixes coins in single transaction Decentralized

@ryanxcharles

Privacy 3/4: Merge Avoidance

Can extend payment protocol

@ryanxcharles

Privacy 4/4: Stealth Addresses

Can share one public address Senders generate new addresses to send to

@ryanxcharles

Privacy Summary

Need all four: Mixing CoinJoin Merge Avoidance Stealth Addresses

...and more

@ryanxcharles

Security 1/2: Server Has a Key

2-of-3 multisig Server keeps one key You keep one key Your friend keeps a key

@ryanxcharles

Security 2/2: N-of-M Multisig

M people (say, a company) N required to sign All keys generated independently Maximum possible security

Fundamentally better than physical storage Real cryptographic security - fundamentally better

than non-crypto signatures

@ryanxcharles

Security Summary

Need: open-source software Signing services Key sharing protocols

@ryanxcharles

Summary

Bitcoin is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity Bitcoin > PhD Do not be tempted by academia. Stay away.

Help build bitcore Need better privacy Need better security github.com/bitpay

@ryanxcharles

Voluntary, Decentralized,Open-Source

Ryan X. CharlesSoftware Engineer

@ryanxcharles

Extra Slides

@ryanxcharles

Legacy Financial System

Fractional Reserve Banks (FRBs) Central Banks Fiat Currencies

@ryanxcharles

Fractional Reserve Banks

Robin Hansons Economic Singularity:

@ryanxcharles

Central Banks

Robin Hansons Economic Singularity:

@ryanxcharles

Fiat Currencies

Robin Hansons Economic Singularity:

@ryanxcharles

Cryptofinancial System

Cryptocurrencies Cryptofinancial software Services (processing, security, credit)

@ryanxcharles

Cryptocurrencies

Bitcoin Litcoin Dogecoin etc.

@ryanxcharles

Cryptocurrencies

Bitcoin Litcoin Dogecoin etc.

@ryanxcharles