- Bitcoin developer Peter Todd has denied being Satoshi Nakamoto despite the claims made in the HBO documentary “Money Electric: The Bitcoin Mystery”
- The documentary’s evidence is circumstantial and relies on speculative reasoning, including Todd’s own joke, “I am Satoshi”
- The crypto community remains skeptical of the documentary’s conclusions, with many experts dismissing the claims due to a lack of substantial proof
The HBO documentary “Money Electric: The Bitcoin Mystery,” which promised to unveil Bitcoin creator Satoshi Nakamoto’s true identity, has received a less than enthusiastic response following its airing last night. Canadian developer Peter Todd was named as the man behind the pseudonym, which Todd denied on X, and many Bitcoin luminaries have scoffed at the connection, suggesting that the evidence put forward is flimsy at best. The episode failed to further the case for anyone being able to identify Satoshi, although it did give Bitcoin some more exposure.
“Well, Yeah, I’m Satoshi Nakamoto”
A well-publicized betting pool sprung up on Polymarket following the announcement of the documentary’s airing over the weekend, with Len Sassaman the favorite for some time until it was revealed that the candidate was still alive. Todd was never in the frame, which made his revelation all the more surprising, mainly because of the ‘evidence’ put forward.
In the documentary, filmmaker Cullen Hoback confronts Todd with speculative connections between him and Satoshi, including chat logs and online behaviors that Hoback interprets as subtle admissions. Todd’s response, “Well, yeah, I’m Satoshi Nakamoto,” has been framed as a critical piece of evidence:
According to Forbes, HBO will say that @peterktodd is Satoshi…
The Forbes article states that “a 2010 BitcoinTalk post replying to Satoshi Nakamoto that [Cullen] Hoback believes was accidentally posted using Todd’s profile”
This is clearly ridiculous! It is just an example of… pic.twitter.com/mjFnHn7Zak
— BitMEX Research (@BitMEXResearch) October 8, 2024
However, Todd has since clarified that this was not a serious admission, reiterating in interviews that Hoback’s theory is “ludicrous” and based on coincidences, stating, “Of course I’m not Satoshi,” and dismissing the documentary’s conclusions as a form of speculative conspiracy. He also categorically denied his role on Twitter:
I’m not Satoshi.
— Peter Todd (@peterktodd) October 8, 2024
Dismissals Come Thick and Fast
The crypto community, including influential figures like Nic Carter and Jameson Lopp, have been quick to dismiss the theory. Carter pointed out that Todd lacks some of the key cryptographic expertise that Satoshi would have had, while Lopp mocked the idea on social media, comparing Todd to infamous Satoshi pretender Craig Wright:
Peter Todd is the real Craig Wrighthttps://t.co/IfdlcTM3sF
— Jameson Lopp (@lopp) October 8, 2024
Early Bitcoin developer Greg Maxwell told us ahead of the screening that the documentary would likely feature “the thinnest amount of circumstantial evidence,” which it did, with no concrete proof whatsoever linking Todd to the role.
Hoback’s film has, nonetheless, stirred the longstanding debate about the true identity of Satoshi Nakamoto. Many in the Bitcoin community, however, argue that the mystery surrounding Nakamoto is part of Bitcoin’s allure and prefer that Satoshi’s identity remains hidden.
