We Now Know Who Satoshi Nakamoto Is
Who is CIA informant and Bitcoin dev, Peter Todd?
Who is Peter Todd? In the new HBO doc "Money Electric," Peter Todd, a key Bitcoin developer, is identified as Satoshi Nakamoto, the creator of Bitcoin.
Todd, pictured above, is exactly what you might expect Satoshi to look like. To quote a Weird Al song: "White & Nerdy."
So, who is this enigmatic Bitcoin developer, and what connection does he have to the CIA and Bitcoin?
Who is Peter Todd, the Alleged Creator of Bitcoin?
Let's talk about the documentary first.
After making waves with his QAnon investigation, Cullen Hoback's latest directorial effort feels severely underwhelming like a blind date that turns out to be your cousin. Don’t ask.
Instead of delving into Satoshi's mystery, the documentary skims through crypto's evolution from Bitcoin to Ethereum, altcoins, CBDCs, and the FTX saga.
It doesn’t focus on fucking Satoshi until the last 20 minutes!
The documentary interviews early Bitcoin supporters like Adam Back, Samson Mow, and Peter Todd. However, it does not include Nick Szabo, Craig Wright, or, of course, Hal Finney, who received the first Bitcoin transaction but passed away in 2014, the same year as Satoshi's last post.
After one hour, the documentary finally starts to look for Satoshi. Originally, it frames Adam Back, the CEO of Blockstream and an early Bitcoin developer, as Satoshi until the very end.
Hoback then uncovers a link to Todd, finding that he may have accidentally continued Satoshi's thoughts on a forum using an alt account.
Take a look at that sentence below and tell me it’s not fishy…
Todd also had a perfect alibi and excuse at the tip of his tongue when the interviewer mentioned it. Some are arguing online that there's no reason for this unless you're a paranoid schizo or actually Satoshi.
The film suggests that Todd's ideas flow seamlessly from Satoshi's original comment (pictured above), echoing the same style of prose.
You can read the direct evidence for yourself here.
Moreover, Peter joined the forum two days earlier, making this the second post he had ever done. Why would Todd participate if he wasn't already connected to Bitcoin?
What makes all this scarier is that in 2013, Todd knowingly conversed with the CIA, who suggested ideas on how to destroy Bitcoin.
All of this is very strange.
So, Is Todd Satoshi Nakamoto?
The ending may be the film's best part; Hoback challenges Todd directly, alleging he's Satoshi, while Todd laughs uncontrollably.
That said, there are reasons to doubt Todd is Satoshi: 1) Tech communities thrive on collaboration, making exchanges like the forum with Satoshi typical. 2) The film frames Todd's response as "super technical" when anyone in the BTC community at the time could understand Satoshi's point. 3) As pointed out in the Bitcoin Subreddit, while many developers are extraordinarily talented, their social shortcomings, like how they talk online, make them easy prey for the media.
It wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibility for a developer to finish the thoughts of Bitcoin's creator.
While it's hard to ignore the rhythm of Peter Todd's 2010 comments in that Bitcoin forum, he likely isn’t Satoshi Nakamoto.
Maybe he knows who he is. I'll be sure to ask him. We have the same barber.
Ultimately, this film is only good to show someone who is an absolute beginner to Bitcoin and cryptocurrency.
It does not prove who Satoshi Nakamoto is beyond a shadow of a doubt.
This article was edited to “Shadow” by the Chromatics.
Thanks for the review. My money is on Hal Finney. He denied being Satoshi on his death bed. But, it didn't seem entirely convincing. And, as you note, we've heard nothing from Satoshi since then.