In 2008, Satoshi Nakamoto published a paper outlining Bitcoin, and the following year he released the first version of the Bitcoin software. Nakamoto was active in the development of Bitcoin until December of 2010, when he handed over control of the code repository to Gavin Andresen.
Since then, Nakamoto’s involvement with Bitcoin has been minimal; he has not responded to any emails from Andresen or anyone else seeking clarification on his involvement with Bitcoin.
Nakamoto’s paper outlined a system by which a decentralized network of computers could come to consensus on the state of a shared transaction ledger, without the need for a central authority. This system is made possible by a combination of cryptographic techniques that allow each participant in the network to prove their identity and ownership of unique digital tokens, and a system of economic incentives that ensures that participants behave honestly.
The first part of Nakamoto’s scheme is a digital cash system based on cryptographic signatures. In order for someone to spend bitcoins, they must sign a message with the private key associated with their bitcoin address. This signature can be verified by anyone with the corresponding public key, and it proves that the signer possesses the private key associated with the bitcoin address.
The second part of Nakamoto’s scheme is a decentralized transaction ledger, which is maintained by a network of computers called miners. Miners are rewarded with newly minted bitcoins for verifying and committing transactions to the ledger.
The combination of these two parts allows for a trustless system in which any participant can verify that all transactions are valid, without needing to trust any central authority. This is possible because each participant can verify the identity of each other participant, and because miners have an incentive to behave honestly in order to be rewarded with new bitcoins.
Satoshi Nakamoto is the genius behind Bitcoin – creating both the protocol and the software that implements it. However, since he handed over control of the code repository in 2010, his involvement with Bitcoin has been minimal.
It is unclear why he chose to remain anonymous, but it is clear that his invention has changed the financial world forever.