Bitcoin Founder Reveals Himself
Australian computer scientist & businessman Craig Wright has revealed himself as being Satoshi Nakamoto, the inventor of Bitcoin. Bitcoin is a form of digital currency that is created and held electronically. Bitcoin was released in 2009, and its creator has used the pseudonym of Satoshi Nakamoto since its inception.
Australian Craig Wright identifies himself as #Bitcoin creator, ending years of speculation https://t.co/j0oyKzVVgk https://t.co/e6pRRIpCCy
— BBC Breaking News (@BBCBreaking) May 2, 2016
In order to validate his claim, Wright presented evidence to three different leading media organizations: the BBC, the Economist, and GQ. The Australian signed an encrypted message using the cryptographic key associated with the first ever Bitcoin transaction. “These are the blocks used to send 10 Bitcoins to Hal Finney in January [2009] as the first Bitcoin transaction,” he said during his demonstration.
Furthermore, Craig Wright also says that he plans to release information that will allow others to cryptographically verify that he is, in fact, the creator of Bitcoin. He also revealed the origin of the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto. The first name, Satoshi, he claims is from a Japanese manga. However, he does not reveal who the character is or from what manga series he is from. As for the last name of Nakamoto, Wright says it is derived from the name of Tominaga Nakamoto, an obscure 18th century Japanese philosopher whose outlook on life he says he sympathizes with.
Right after Craig Wright went public about his identity, his claims were backed by Gavin Andresen, a chief scientist at the Bitcoin foundation. In his blog, Gavin writes “I believe Craig Steven Wright is the person who invented Bitcoin.” And Andresen is not alone in his backing of Wright. Jon Matonis, one of the Bitcoin foundation’s founding directors, has stated that he is convinced about Craig Wright being the founder of Bitcoin. “During the London proof sessions, I had the opportunity to review the relevant data along three distinct lines: cryptographic, social, and technical,” he says. “It is my firm belief that Craig Wright satisfies all three categories.”
Since its introduction, there have been numerous speculations regarding the true identity of the creator of Bitcoin. In a 2011 article, the New Yorker claimed that Satoshi Nakamoto could be either one of two people: Finnish economist Vili Lehdonvirta, or Michael Clear, a cryptography grad student at Trinity College in Dublin. Both people eventually went on to deny the claims. Neal King, Vladimir Oksman, or Charles Bry are other people who have been associated with the creation of Bitcoin. These claims had eventually been dismissed. Another major claim came in March, 2014, when Newsweek claimed that the founder of Bitcoin was a Japanese-American by the name of Dorian Prentice Satoshi Nakamoto. This claim led to other media folks stalking Mr. Nakamoto outside his home and even chasing his car around hoping to get him to answer. The hype was so great that it eventually provoked the actual Satoshi to respond to the claims via email. “I am not Dorian Nakamoto,” he said.
So, is Craig Wright who he claims to be? Many are, however, still not convinced with the information he has provided in his blog. Some cryptographers and developers say that they’re having trouble getting verifiable information out of what evidence Wright has provided. They say he needs to produce further evidence to prove his case.
[Photo by George Frey/Getty Images]
