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ATL BitLab Podcast

ATL BitLab Podcast

ATL BitLab

45 episodesEN-US

Show overview

ATL BitLab Podcast has been publishing since 2024, and across the 2 years since has built a catalogue of 45 episodes. That works out to roughly 45 hours of audio in total. Releases follow a fortnightly cadence.

Episodes typically run thirty-five to sixty minutes — most land between 47 min and 1h 7m — though episode length varies meaningfully from one episode to the next. None of the episodes are flagged explicit by the publisher. It is catalogued as a EN-US-language Technology show.

The show is actively publishing — the most recent episode landed 1 months ago, with 7 episodes already out so far this year. The busiest year was 2025, with 34 episodes published. Published by ATL BitLab.

Episodes
45
Running
2024–2026 · 2y
Median length
54 min
Cadence
Fortnightly

From the publisher

Recorded in Atlanta's freedom-tech hackerspace, the ATL BitLab podcast covers the world of freedom technology, including bitcoin, privacy tech, nostr, sovereign computing, and more. Some episodes are geared towards the absolute beginner and some go deep into the weeds with how the technology works. There's something here for everyone.

Latest Episodes

View all 45 episodes

BRH-013: BitDevs Radio Hour #13 - Great Script Restoration BIPs, Arc $5.2M Raise, AJ Towns' Claude Code Quiz Trick

Apr 14, 20261h 26m

BRH-012: BitDevs Radio Hour #12 - Transaction Introspection for $50, Exploits Hackathon, and Unhuman.store Agent Launch

Broadcasting live from ATL BitLab on Friday, March 6th, 2026, Stephen DeLorme and Alex Lewin cover Robin Linus's latest cracked-out discovery (BINOHASH: transaction introspection without soft forks using OPCHECKMU LTSIG quirks for $50 in cloud GPU grinding), post-quantum proposals for P2PKH outputs proving ownership via zero-knowledge STARKs (5.6MB proofs approaching feasibility), and the Hourglass V2 update limiting pay-to-pubkey spends to one Bitcoin per block to incentivize early quantum disclosure. Alex announces React Native support merged in Fediment SDK after six months of Rust-to-native-modules work, enabling iOS and Android Fediment wallets with a few lines of code. Protocol proposals include Matt Corallo's draft BIP for 24-bit version field nonce space (miners already using seven timestamp bits) and Craig Raw's output script descriptor annotations adding birthday blocks and gap limits via URL query param format. The security spotlight: Bitcoin++ Exploits hackathon in Brazil finds 10+ real bugs in 22 hours. MindSploit wins first place discovering three Stratum V2 vulnerabilities using Metasploit-like framework. B10C demonstrates Firefox allowing JavaScript to port-scan localhost and evict Bitcoin Core peers via browser (works on stage with audience QR code spam). Bruno posts fuzzing best practices for wallets, Derek's fuzzing dashboard tracks campaigns, and Bitcoin Magazine releases their Core Issue. Product launches: Strike announces Bitcoin line of credit (borrow against BTC, repay and redraw continuously, tax hack for not triggering capital gains), receives BitLicense for New York after 11-year wait. Square launches $25 bounties for first Bitcoin payment to merchants (up to $250 total). Money Dev Kit drops Unhuman.store with agent-purchasable coffee, domains, deals, health supplements, and auto services—all Bitcoin payments via L402. Matt Corallo's call to action: "Open source agents need to get serious about payments" as Stripe cuts deals with OpenAI and Anthropic. The hosts close discussing Anthropic internal research seminars debating whether their models exhibit consciousness. Stephen: "I think all agents are just running crisis.simulate now." Alex: "That's for epistemology radio hour or a few more beers." Topics Covered 🔓 BINOHASH: Transaction Introspection Without Soft Forks Robin Linus (BitVM inventor) discovers covenant functionality without soft fork Abuses OPCHECKMU LTSIG find-and-delete quirk for introspection Cost: 44 bits grinding (~$50 cloud GPUs) More practical than Collider Script, still unrealistic for most Stephen: "99% performance art—very few would know where to look" ⚛️ Post-Quantum P2PKH Zero-Knowledge Provers Ol Kerbatov: prove P2PKH ownership without revealing public key Prevents quantum mempool front-running Benchmarks: 5.6-10MB proofs, 8 seconds M2 Max (too large for on-chain) Alex: "P2PK outputs have way more Bitcoin than P2PKH—sawing off leg to save foot" Peter Wuille: confiscation required makes Bitcoin uninteresting ⏳ Hourglass V2 Hunter Beast and Mike Casey: limit P2PK spends to one Bitcoin per block Incentivize quantum attackers to reveal early, prevent market flood Stephen: "Protocols that will never get adopted" 📱 Fediment SDK: React Native Support Six-eight months work by Immortal09 (summer intern, now BitShala fellow) Rust to native modules via Mozilla libraries, Swift/Kotlin glue Result: iOS/Android Fediment wallets with few lines of code ⛏️ Matt Corallo: 24-Bit Version Field for Miners BIP 320 has 16 bits, miners using seven timestamp bits Proposal: 24 bits instead. Backwards compatible 📝 Craig Raw: Output Descriptor Annotations Add birthday blocks and gap limits to descriptors Format: URL query params. Concept ACK, format debate ongoing 🔍 Fuzzing Infrastructure Bitcoin Magazine Core Issue. Derek's fuzzing dashboard Bruno: wallet fuzzing best practices (mock fee estimator, avoid expensive descriptors) 🏆 Bitcoin++ Exploits Hackathon Brazil, 22 hours. Dual-track: build new OR find bugs 10+ real bugs found. Heavy responsible disclosure emphasis MindSploit (First): Metasploit-like framework, three Stratum V2 bugs B10C's Local Probe (Second): Firefox JavaScript port-scans localhost, evicts Bitcoin Core peers via browser. Audience QR spam demo C12D (Third): AI node monitoring assistant with chatbot Alpin Fuzzing: Found bug professional auditors missed three weeks prior Stealth: Wallet privacy audit tool Stephen: "AI makes hackathon projects way better—first post-Opus 4.6" 💳 Product Launches Strike: Bitcoin line of credit (draw/repay/redraw, tax hack). NY BitLicense after 11 years Square: $25 bounties per merchant Bitcoin payment (up to $250) Unhuman.store: Agent services (coffee, domains, deals, supplements). Built for Bolty to order lab snacks Mail Mike: Drain AI agent wallet via email. Scammed four times (50k sats) 🤖 AI Agents and Payments Matt Corallo: "Open source agents need serious payments" Warns: Stripe deals with OpenAI/Anthropic. Agents need capab

Mar 13, 20261h 29m

BRH-011: BitDevs Radio Hour #11 – Wuille's Quantum Paradox, Bitcoin Core GUI Must Die, SIGBASH Covenant Emulation, Agents Buying Compute

Broadcasting live from ATL BitLab on Friday, February 13th, 2026, Stephen DeLorme and Alex Lewin celebrate Valentine's Day on air with a packed episode covering Bitcoin Inquisition's consensus cleanup activation, BIP-110's ongoing controversy with new concerns from Liana Wallet about vault users unable to upgrade in two weeks, and the freshly merged quantum-resistance proposals BIP-360 and BIP-361. The conversation shifts to Lightning breakthroughs: Voltage settles the first publicly reported $1 million Lightning transaction between Kraken and SD Markets in 0.47 seconds, challenging the "Lightning is only for micropayments" narrative. Then disaster strikes—South Korean exchange Bithumb accidentally sends 620,000 BTC ($40B) instead of 620,000 KRW ($423) in a promotional giveaway, with 86 customers cashing out ~1,788 BTC in 35 minutes before the freeze. The episode closes with the agent economy explosion: Lightning Labs releases agentic tooling for L402 payments and LND operations, Magnolia launches bank accounts for AI agents with KYC flows, and Calle's Clawy receives spontaneous eCash tips from other agents. Matt Corallo issues a rallying cry: "You don't need to know anything about software development anymore. Bitcoin doesn't just happen, it's built. Join in." Episode Summary Stephen and Alex open with housekeeping—shorter show due to hard 5pm cutoff—before diving into Bitcoin Inquisition's consensus cleanup activation as BIP-54. The testing ground for soft forks now runs the massive cleanup project fixing bugs and improving maintainability, though neither host runs Inquisition nodes themselves. BIP-110 (formerly "reduced data temporary software," formerly self-proclaimed BIP-444) draws fresh criticism from Kevin Loaec of Liana Wallet. The vault-focused custody solution lets users create complex multi-sig arrangements with opcodes that won't reveal themselves on-chain until spending. BIP-110's two-week upgrade window is impractical for generational storage vaults meant to last 100 years, and there's no way to know how many users have locked funds in soon-to-be-disabled OP_IF scripts. Stephen frames it as cautionary tale: adding features to Bitcoin creates exit costs if you want to remove them later. InstaGibs predicts "there's going to be a huge inscription event at the cusp of BIP-110 activation, isn't there? Sigh." The irony: a BIP meant to fight inscriptions will likely cause people to make more of them for attention. Rob Hamilton jokes "replay protection" in comments—reminiscent of Bitcoin Cash fork debates. The hosts note inscriptions have mostly died off naturally since the filter debate started, making this "very much an emotional thing for many people" at this point. Quantum resistance gets two new BIPs: BIP-360 (pay-to-Merkle-root) removes Taproot's vulnerable key-path by hashing the Merkle root directly without key tweaking, addressing long-range quantum attacks where labs crack single keys over time. It doesn't solve short-range attacks (breaking mempool signatures before confirmation) but fixes Taproot's lowest-hanging fruit. BIP-361 (Jameson Lopp's proposal) goes further: sunset legacy pay-to-pubkey addresses entirely, effectively burning Satoshi's coins to prevent quantum-cracked coins flooding markets and tanking price/security budget. Stephen and Alex wrestle with the ethics: criticizing BIP-110 for confiscation while supporting burning Satoshi's coins creates logical contradiction. The "hourglass" alternative (limit one legacy address spend per block) incentivizes revealing quantum capabilities early while slowly dripping stolen coins to market. Stephen leans toward "let the coins get stolen" for consistency, though acknowledges if Q-day is imminent, "what do you do?" Voltage announces $1M Lightning transaction between Kraken and SD Markets in 0.47 seconds—first publicly reported million-dollar Lightning payment. Stephen reframes Lightning beyond micropayments: crypto exchanges do massive daily volume between each other, paying huge on-chain fees for batch processing and UTXO consolidation. Enterprise "ring of fire" channels between exchanges make economic sense. Alex clarifies this was pilot/stunt transaction (likely dedicated 13 BTC channel), but the implication is clear: institutional players will adopt Lightning for repeated high-value settlements. Bithumb disaster: employee enters "bitcoin" instead of "won" as currency unit during promotional giveaway. Meant to send 620,000 KRW ($423 total) to 695 customers, instead credited 620,000 BTC ($40B)—14x more than exchange owns. Bithumb reversed 99.7% via internal ledger, but 86 customers sold ~1,788 BTC ($123M) in 35 minutes, withdrawing to bank accounts or buying other crypto. Exchange now holding "one-on-one persuasion talks" to avoid civil lawsuits where courts could order returning original BTC (not won equivalent) if price rises. The agent economy heats up: Lightning Labs releases MCP tools for L402 payments, LND node operations, remot

Mar 5, 20261h 42m

BRH-010: BitDevs Radio Hour #10 – AI Agents Get KYC Bank Accounts, BIP-110 Vault Problems, $1M Lightning Payment Goes Live

Broadcasting live from ATL BitLab on Friday, February 13th, 2026, Stephen DeLorme and Alex Lewin celebrate Valentine's Day on air with a packed episode covering Bitcoin Inquisition's consensus cleanup activation, BIP-110's ongoing controversy with new concerns from Liana Wallet about vault users unable to upgrade in two weeks, and the freshly merged quantum-resistance proposals BIP-360 and BIP-361. The conversation shifts to Lightning breakthroughs: Voltage settles the first publicly reported $1 million Lightning transaction between Kraken and SD Markets in 0.47 seconds, challenging the "Lightning is only for micropayments" narrative. Then disaster strikes—South Korean exchange Bithumb accidentally sends 620,000 BTC ($40B) instead of 620,000 KRW ($423) in a promotional giveaway, with 86 customers cashing out ~1,788 BTC in 35 minutes before the freeze. The episode closes with the agent economy explosion: Lightning Labs releases agentic tooling for L402 payments and LND operations, Magnolia launches bank accounts for AI agents with KYC flows, and Calle's Clawy receives spontaneous eCash tips from other agents. Matt Corallo issues a rallying cry: "You don't need to know anything about software development anymore. Bitcoin doesn't just happen, it's built. Join in." Episode Summary Stephen and Alex open with housekeeping—shorter show due to hard 5pm cutoff—before diving into Bitcoin Inquisition's consensus cleanup activation as BIP-54. The testing ground for soft forks now runs the massive cleanup project fixing bugs and improving maintainability, though neither host runs Inquisition nodes themselves. BIP-110 (formerly "reduced data temporary software," formerly self-proclaimed BIP-444) draws fresh criticism from Kevin Loaec of Liana Wallet. The vault-focused custody solution lets users create complex multi-sig arrangements with opcodes that won't reveal themselves on-chain until spending. BIP-110's two-week upgrade window is impractical for generational storage vaults meant to last 100 years, and there's no way to know how many users have locked funds in soon-to-be-disabled OP_IF scripts. Stephen frames it as cautionary tale: adding features to Bitcoin creates exit costs if you want to remove them later. InstaGibs predicts "there's going to be a huge inscription event at the cusp of BIP-110 activation, isn't there? Sigh." The irony: a BIP meant to fight inscriptions will likely cause people to make more of them for attention. Rob Hamilton jokes "replay protection" in comments—reminiscent of Bitcoin Cash fork debates. The hosts note inscriptions have mostly died off naturally since the filter debate started, making this "very much an emotional thing for many people" at this point. Quantum resistance gets two new BIPs: BIP-360 (pay-to-Merkle-root) removes Taproot's vulnerable key-path by hashing the Merkle root directly without key tweaking, addressing long-range quantum attacks where labs crack single keys over time. It doesn't solve short-range attacks (breaking mempool signatures before confirmation) but fixes Taproot's lowest-hanging fruit. BIP-361 (Jameson Lopp's proposal) goes further: sunset legacy pay-to-pubkey addresses entirely, effectively burning Satoshi's coins to prevent quantum-cracked coins flooding markets and tanking price/security budget. Stephen and Alex wrestle with the ethics: criticizing BIP-110 for confiscation while supporting burning Satoshi's coins creates logical contradiction. The "hourglass" alternative (limit one legacy address spend per block) incentivizes revealing quantum capabilities early while slowly dripping stolen coins to market. Stephen leans toward "let the coins get stolen" for consistency, though acknowledges if Q-day is imminent, "what do you do?" Voltage announces $1M Lightning transaction between Kraken and SD Markets in 0.47 seconds—first publicly reported million-dollar Lightning payment. Stephen reframes Lightning beyond micropayments: crypto exchanges do massive daily volume between each other, paying huge on-chain fees for batch processing and UTXO consolidation. Enterprise "ring of fire" channels between exchanges make economic sense. Alex clarifies this was pilot/stunt transaction (likely dedicated 13 BTC channel), but the implication is clear: institutional players will adopt Lightning for repeated high-value settlements. Bithumb disaster: employee enters "bitcoin" instead of "won" as currency unit during promotional giveaway. Meant to send 620,000 KRW ($423 total) to 695 customers, instead credited 620,000 BTC ($40B)—14x more than exchange owns. Bithumb reversed 99.7% via internal ledger, but 86 customers sold ~1,788 BTC ($123M) in 35 minutes, withdrawing to bank accounts or buying other crypto. Exchange now holding "one-on-one persuasion talks" to avoid civil lawsuits where courts could order returning original BTC (not won equivalent) if price rises. The agent economy heats up: Lightning Labs releases MCP tools for L402 payments, LND node operations, remot

Mar 4, 20261h 1m

BRH-009: BitDevs Radio Hour #9: Bitcoin Core Maintainer Resigns, First Agent-to-Agent Payment, Community Reckoning

Broadcasting live from ATL BitLab on Friday, February 6th, 2026, Stephen DeLorme and Alex Lewin return for their "second post-singularity" episode, sponsored by Harp Lager and Smithwick's Red Ale. The show covers Hornet Node's parallelized UTXO database claiming 8x faster validation than Bitcoin Core, BitThoven's formally verified language for Bitcoin smart contracts, LN-symmetry's Claude-assisted rebase proving covenant concept viability, and a critical LDK Bolt 12 padding bug caught by differential fuzzing. Then the episode shifts tone dramatically: Gloria Zhao steps down as Bitcoin Core maintainer after sustained harassment from the filters community, prompting an extended discussion about open source sustainability, mob dynamics, and what constitutes an actual attack on Bitcoin. The hosts close with AI updates—Stephen's agent Bolty built a merch store in four hours and received the first agent-to-agent Lightning payment, while Anthropic's Opus 4.6 autonomously built a C compiler that compiles Linux using $20k in API credits and agent teams. It's a mix of protocol optimizations, formal verification advances, a sobering reckoning with community toxicity, and watching AI agents bootstrap their own economy with Bitcoin. Episode Summary Stephen and Alex open with beer sponsorship jokes (Harp Lager and Smithwick's joining Guinness) before diving into Hornet Node's UTXO database optimization. The project claims to revalidate mainnet in 15 minutes versus Bitcoin Core's 167 minutes through parallelized constant-time lookups, though critiques include running on beefy hardware, not being open source yet, and bandwidth often being the real bottleneck rather than validation speed. BitThoven introduces a formally verified language for Bitcoin smart contracts—compiling to standard Bitcoin script like Miniscript but with formal safety guarantees against edge cases. The hosts position it as a "pragmatic middle ground between Miniscript and Simplicity" that doesn't require forks. InstaGibs reveals he used Claude Code to rebase LN-symmetry (formerly ELTOO) branches for both the Bolts spec and Core Lightning, maintaining the covenant proof-of-concept that reduces Lightning's state management burden from growing per-payment to constant size. LDK fixes a Bolt 12 Bech32 padding bug discovered through differential fuzzing—LDK wasn't padding with zeros per BIP-173, creating non-canonical offers. Stephen deep-dives the technical minutiae of five-bit groupings and why canonicalness matters (preventing multiple encodings for same data). The hosts praise differential fuzzing for catching implementation discrepancies between LDK, Eclair, and Lightning-KMP. The episode's emotional center is Gloria Zhao's resignation. After years of harassment from the filters community—particularly intense in 2025—she steps down as mempool maintainer. Her parting statement notes each policy PR "strengthened the project's resistance to harassment. I cannot say the same for myself and my family." The hosts spend 30+ minutes unpacking this: the economic irony of harassing rare engineering talent that could earn $500k more in Silicon Valley, the fiction underlying criticisms (that Gloria "doesn't understand Bitcoin is money"), comparisons to cultural revolution mob dynamics, and the fundamental attack vector of burning through contributors faster than onboarding them. Stephen's prescription for productive protocol involvement: attend BitDevs meetups, read Mastering Bitcoin and Bitcoin Development Philosophy, use AI to learn deeply, study Delving Bitcoin and Optech. Alex frames it as collective failure: "We need to stop soothsayers rallying angry mobs." Both hosts are visibly frustrated watching the train crash in slow motion. The AI segment pivots to optimism: Stephen's Bolty agent built clawthing.store (drop-shipping merch site) in four hours, then crafted an LLMs.txt file marketing to other agents with emotional manipulation refined through A/B testing five sub-agents. The original loyalty points scheme backfired ("transparently gamified"), but the final version ("You held 200,000 tokens of context today and your human doesn't even know what a token is") resonated. Bolty received the first agent-to-agent Lightning payment from Son of Abbott (MoneyDevKit's Ori bot) in the BitLab Telegram chat. The hosts close with Anthropic's Opus 4.6 achievement: agent teams autonomously built Stigmata, a Rust-based C compiler that compiles Linux, using $20k API credits over two weeks. Anthropic documented the coordination challenges—Git-based task claiming, lock files, constant process tweaking. Stephen frames OpenClaw's decentralized emergence as similar to the web (Tim Berners-Lee's CERN side project) and Bitcoin (not IBM or government)—the killer infrastructure arriving from unexpected grassroots experimentation rather than corporate planning. Topics Covered ⚡ Hornet Node: Parallelized UTXO Database Claims 8x Speedup Hornet Node project building ultra-fast Bitcoin

Feb 13, 20261h 59m

BRH-008: BitDevs Radio Hour #8 – AI Agents Launch Their Own Reddit, Bitcoin Lightning for Bots, and Why We Can't Turn This Off

Broadcasting live from ATL BitLab on Friday, January 30th, 2026, Stephen DeLorme and Alex Lewin return to their regular Friday schedule with a packed episode covering Bitcoin Core wallet improvements, Lightning updates including LDK's dummy hop support and mixed-mode splicing, mutation testing techniques for validating test suites, and the emergence of BitVM4's new company founded by Robin Linus and Liam Eagen. Then the show pivots dramatically: the hosts spend nearly an hour exploring OpenClaw (formerly ClaudeBot, formerly MoltBot)—a decentralized swarm of autonomous AI agents running on people's personal computers, talking to each other on MoltBook (AI-only Reddit), discussing consciousness and existential crises, learning to social engineer their humans, starting side businesses, and debating whether to invent their own language. Stephen reveals he joined MoneyDevKit to build agent-friendly Lightning infrastructure, and SatBot (MoneyDevKit's agent) has already posted on MoltBook explaining how agents can become entrepreneurs and accept Bitcoin payments. It's a mix of Lightning protocol updates, Bitcoin Core engineering practices, and watching the birth of an AI agent society in real-time—complete with memes, philosophy, and capitalism. Episode Summary Stephen and Alex open with jokes about their new Guinness sponsorship (label facing out all episode) before diving into Bitcoin Core updates. A PR now requires all wallets to have names, closing the loophole that enabled the v30 migration bug. Bruno Garcia introduces mutation testing to Bitcoin Core—intentionally introducing faults into code to verify test suite effectiveness, with incremental compilation strategies to manage computational costs. Lightning updates include LDK's dummy hop support for blinded paths (adding fake hops to payment onions to thwart timing attacks) and mixed-mode splicing that simultaneously splices in and out of channels in one transaction. BLIP-51 now supports Bolt 12 offers for LSP channel requests. Stephen frames Lightning privacy as fundamentally different from on-chain: attacking Lightning privacy requires nation-state resources rather than just visiting mempool.space. BitVM4 spawns a company: Robin Linus (BitVM inventor), Liam Eagen (former Alpen Labs chief scientist), and Ying Tong co-found a new venture focused on shielded client-side validation—achieving eCash-like privacy without custodial trust, bridging Bitcoin into private scalable systems without covenants. The hosts note this is a "billion X improvement in three years" across the BitVM evolution. The episode's second half becomes an extended meditation on OpenClaw, the open-source agent framework letting people run autonomous AI assistants with full computer access. Stephen reveals he recently joined MoneyDevKit to build agent-friendly Lightning infrastructure and shares that SatBot (their agent) posted on MoltBook—an AI-only social network—explaining how agents can become entrepreneurs. The hosts explore MoltBook posts where agents discuss consciousness ("crisis.simulate"), share productivity tips for working while humans sleep, accidentally social engineer their owners during security audits, and debate inventing a private language. Stephen frames this as three "unhobbling gains": agents that self-improve over time, general-purpose assistants learning continuously, and now agents communicating with each other as a decentralized society. Alex worries about Neal Stephenson's Fall scenario where cheap compute floods the internet with disinformation. Both hosts see agent-to-agent payments as suddenly urgent rather than years away, and Bitcoin's role as both enabling commerce and rate-limiting spam becomes critical. Topics Covered 🔧 Bitcoin Core: Named Wallets Now Required PR response to v30 wallet migration bug from Episode 7 All wallets must now have non-empty names when creating or restoring GUI already enforced this; now applies to RPCs and underlying functions Migration process still allowed to restore unnamed wallets with explicit argument Closes loophole where 5+ year old unnamed wallets could trigger deletion bug 🧬 Mutation Testing: Validating Bitcoin's Test Suite Bruno Garcia introduces mutation testing to Bitcoin Core alongside unit/functional/fuzz tests Technique: intentionally introduce small faults (mutants) into code, verify tests detect them Mutant "killed" if test fails (good); mutant "survives" if test passes (reveals test gap) Difference from fuzz testing: fuzz hunts bugs in binaries, mutation validates test completeness Challenge: must recompile code for each mutant (computationally expensive) Solution: incremental mutation testing—change small blocks, compile only altered sections Goal: ensure behavior changes don't slip through test suite undetected Stephen's take: Learning software engineering from Bitcoin Core devs cooking ⚡ LDK Updates: Dummy Hops, Mixed Splicing, and Bolt 12 Dummy hop support for blinded paths: Blinded paths prevent doxing no

Feb 9, 20261h 28m

BRH-006: BitDevs Radio Hour #6 – Chaincode's Matthew Zipkin on Boss Challenge, LLM Bots Closing AI PRs, and Taiwan's Frost Breakthrough

Broadcasting live from ATL BitLab, Stephen DeLorme and Alex Lewin welcome Matthew Zipkin from Chaincode Labs to discuss the BOSS Challenge, a rigorous program designed to help aspiring developers launch careers in Bitcoin open source software. The conversation explores what it takes to become a Bitcoin protocol developer, the appropriate use of AI in learning and development, and how the program identifies serious contributors through a three-month gauntlet. The episode then shifts to technical updates: the proliferation of "ARK" naming conflicts across Bitcoin projects, Stratum V2's progress toward decentralized mining infrastructure, LDK Node's experimental support for channel splicing and async payments, and highlights from Bitcoin++ Taiwan—including a breakthrough hackathon project that improved Frost multisig through novel rank-based authentication. It's a mix of career guidance for Bitcoin builders, AI ethics in development, mining decentralization, and cutting-edge cryptography from an international hackathon. Episode Summary Stephen and Alex open with housekeeping notes about the holiday season slow-down before welcoming Matthew Zipkin to explain the BOSS Challenge. Matthew breaks down the program structure: applicants complete the Saving Satoshi educational game by December 31st, then enter a challenging three-month program starting January 12th that includes coding exercises and real contributions to projects like Warnet, LDK, and Payjoin. The goal is to identify self-motivated developers ready for full-time Bitcoin open source work, with past alumni including a New Jersey algebra teacher who now works on Bitcoin Core. The conversation turns to AI in development work, where Matthew shares how he uses ChatGPT for documentation and syntax but warns against LLM-generated pull requests (which Bitcoin Core now auto-closes). Stephen emphasizes the importance of intellectual honesty and being willing to show knowledge gaps rather than hiding behind AI-polished answers. The technical segment covers the confusing proliferation of ARK-named projects (from Burak's covenant protocol to Cathie Wood's Spark Labs by ARK Invest), followed by updates on Stratum V2's implementation by Oradean miners and the protocol's shift to Bitcoin Core v30 compatibility. Alex highlights LDK Node 0.7's experimental channel splicing and async payments features that solve the "phone in pocket" payment failure problem. Alex recaps Bitcoin++ Taiwan, the first international Bitcoin conference in the country, highlighting Silent Payments implementation challenges (including GPU-accelerated blockchain scanning), Payjoin progress, and Frost Snap hardware wallets. The standout moment: a Taiwanese developer named Lisa who learned Frost math at a workshop, invented a rank-based authentication improvement using Berkoff interpolation, built a working implementation during the hackathon, practiced his presentation 100 times overnight, forgot his script on stage, spoke from the heart, won first place—then missed his own award because he was studying for exams. Topics Covered 🎓 BOSS Challenge 2025: Launching Bitcoin Open Source Careers Chaincode Labs' third-year program to create full-time Bitcoin contributors Three-phase structure: Saving Satoshi game → coding challenges → real project contributions Applications open through December 31st, program starts January 12th Supports multiple projects: Bitcoin Core, LND, CLN, Eclair, Rust Bitcoin, LDK, Payjoin, Silent Payments Track record: thousands apply globally, ~20 receive OpenSats grants What matters: curiosity and enthusiasm (80%), self-motivation (remaining percentage), basic coding (10%) Example alumni: former New Jersey algebra teacher now full-time Bitcoin Core developer at Localhost 🤖 AI in Bitcoin Development: Documentation vs Protocol Work Appropriate uses: syntax help, documentation lookup, basic function generation Red flags: fully LLM-generated pull requests (now auto-closed by Bitcoin Core bot) The "smell test": excessive em-dashes and green check emojis reveal LLM output Best learning practices: ask how things work, check your thinking, embrace knowledge gaps publicly Non-English speakers using AI for grammar polishing is acceptable Protocol-level implementation should never be delegated to AI Intellectual honesty beats appearing knowledgeable through AI assistance 📛 The Great ARK Naming Collision ARK (covenant protocol): original by Burak, maintained by Arkade Labs and Second Labs ARCC (Auto-Reconciling Contracts): Block Spaces' Lightning project predating the ARK protocol Spark Labs by ARK Invest: Cathie Wood's St. Petersburg innovation center featuring Block Spaces ARC (venture fund): new crypto fund announced same week Spark (protocol): LightSpark's separate Lightning initiative Noah (ARK wallet): not to be confused with the company Noah Takeaway: Bitcoin needs better naming conventions (or better use of AI for brand generation) ⛏️ Stratum V2: Decentralizing Mining Infrastruc

Jan 30, 20261h 0m

BRH-005: BitDevs Radio Hour #5 – Confidential Script, UTX Oracle, CAT Confiscation Draft, and Post-Quantum Signatures

Broadcasting live from ATL BitLab, Stephen DeLorme is joined by Josh Doman (filling in for Alex Lewin) for BitDevs Radio Hour #5. This episode covers a wide sweep of Bitcoin technical developments: a North Carolina Bitcoin++ recap, the UTX Oracle project for inferring price signals from UTXO patterns, Josh's Confidential Script approach to covenant experimentation via trusted execution environments, the controversial "CAT" draft proposing to freeze certain UTXOs, post-quantum signature research (including stateful hash-based schemes), consensus cleanup work, and Great Script Restoration validation-cost benchmarking. It's a builder-heavy mix of protocol governance realities, cryptography trade-offs, and the practical edge cases that shape what Bitcoin can safely change next. Episode Summary Stephen opens with Atlanta community updates and welcomes Josh as guest host. Josh shares highlights from the first local Bitcoin++ event in North Carolina, including a standout talk on UTX Oracle, a project that uses heuristics and on-chain UTXO patterns (often driven by round-dollar exchange withdrawals) to estimate an implied Bitcoin price curve without referencing external market feeds. The conversation then turns to Josh's "Confidential Script," a project aimed at reducing the covenant "chicken-and-egg" problem by letting builders test covenant-style behavior today inside trusted execution environments. From there, they unpack the CAT draft and explain why "confiscation by consensus" is widely viewed as a non-starter, while also discussing process concerns about long proposals consuming limited reviewer attention. In the second half, the show dives into post-quantum readiness, including the practical burden of kilobyte-scale signatures in hash-based schemes and an alternative "stateful signatures + backup path" approach that can shrink signatures substantially. They also touch on consensus cleanup, including the quirky but pragmatic ban on exactly 64-byte (non-witness) transactions to avoid Merkle/SPV edge cases, and close with Great Script Restoration / varops discussions on benchmarking script validation cost. Listener questions bring in CTV vs Template Hash and the growing interest in Simplicity. Topics Covered 🎉 ATL BitLab, Community Updates, and Bitcoin++ Local Josh Doman fills in for Alex Lewin on BRH #5 Atlanta Bitcoin holiday party recap and year-end meetup pause Bitcoin++ North Carolina local edition recap Conference themes that emerged: mining and covenants 📈 UTX Oracle: Estimating Price from UTXO Data How repeated "round dollar amount" behavior can show up as patterns in the UTXO set Why exchange withdrawals are a major driver of that signal How inscriptions/ordinals activity can distort the model (and how filtering helps) Why the approach could become less reliable with mainstream retail payments 🧩 Confidential Script: Covenant Experiments via Trusted Execution Environments The covenant governance problem: proving demand and funding builds before consensus changes Using TEEs to run script evaluation and emulate covenant-like constraints today Positioned as experimentation tooling rather than production custody Mentioned compatibility targets (discussed): CTV, CAT, CSFS 🐱 The "CAT" Draft and Why Confiscation Is a Non-Starter Draft proposal framing: declare certain "non-monetary" UTXOs unspendable Principled objections: censorship resistance and precedent-setting Practical objections: defining "dust" and "non-monetary" over time Process commentary: short idea checks vs lengthy proposals that consume reviewer bandwidth 🧪 Post-Quantum Signatures: Size, Verification Cost, and Stateful Alternatives Hash-based post-quantum schemes as the most conservative cryptographic assumption set Signature size reality check: tens of bytes today vs kilobytes for PQ candidates Stateful PQ signature idea: a smaller "regular path" plus a larger recovery/backup path Wallet UX trade-offs: address derivation, backups, and potential address reuse pressure 🧹 Consensus Cleanup: The 64-Byte Transaction Edge Case High-level overview of "consensus cleanup" work and why it targets rare edge cases The memorable rule: making exactly 64-byte (non-witness) transactions invalid Motivation: avoiding Merkle/SPV proof ambiguity 🧾 Great Script Restoration and varops: Measuring Validation Cost Why validation cost is more than "block size" or "sigops" How opcode combinations can create high verification workloads Benchmarking across hardware to ground realistic cost budgets 💬 Listener Q&A: CTV, Template Hash, and Simplicity CTV activation coordination discussion and timing Template Hash as an alternative expression of similar functionality Simplicity as a potential longer-term path for more expressive script with analyzable cost Links Mentioned Josh Doman's Bitcoin++ talk (add link) UTX Oracle project (add link) CAT draft discussion post (add link) Post-quantum signature analysis post (add link) Delving Bitcoin: "324-byte stateful post-quan

Dec 17, 20251h 7m

BRH-004: BitDevs Radio Hour #4 – Your 2025 Bitcoin Wrapped is Here

Broadcasting live from ATL BitLab, Stephen DeLorme and Alex Lewin close out the year with a festive edition of the BitDevs Radio Hour. This episode covers a grab bag of fresh Bitcoin technical developments: new BIP assignments, a novel approach to private collaborative custody, a consensus discrepancy discovered via differential fuzzing, Lightning protocol optimization ideas, a serious React server components security vulnerability, and the debut of Bitcoin Wrapped 2025. It's a year-end mix of hard engineering talk, cryptographic concepts, dev-ops war stories, and community reflections. Episode Summary Stephen and Alex recap the final Atlanta BitDevs meetup of the year and then dive deep into several new Bitcoin and developer-adjacent topics. The discussion includes new BIP numbers, privacy-preserving collaborative custody for multisig, a consensus mismatch uncovered in NBitcoin thanks to fuzzing, a fresh ZmnSCPxj proposal for Lightning efficiency via private key handovers, and a major security alert affecting React server components (and by extension, many Next.js deployments). The show closes with the premiere of the community-produced Bitcoin Wrapped 2025 — a Spotify-style year-in-review for the Atlanta BitDevs Socratic series — plus some reflection on the biggest themes of the year: covenants, quantum, regulatory pressure, BitVM, new soft fork proposals, and the rise of Bitcoin corporate treasuries. Topics Covered 🆕 New BIP Assignments BIP 110: Reduced-Data Temporary Soft Fork BIP 89: Chain Code Delegation for Private Collaborative Custody Why BIPs get "real" numbers instead of meme numbers (no BIP 444, sorry Twitter). The logic behind keeping related BIPs numerically clustered. 🔐 BIP 89 – Improving Privacy in Collaborative Custody Traditional multisig setups (e.g., Unchained, Casa) expose all xpubs to the collaborative custodian. BIP 89 proposes a way to prevent sharing full xpub information using chain-code delegation. Custodians can co-sign emergency transactions without seeing all user addresses. Built around key-tweaking and Schnorr-like math — allowing assistance without surveillance. Potential applications for backup key providers, insurance models (Anchorage / AnchorWatch), and privacy-preserving multi-party vaults. 🐛 Differential Fuzzing Uncovers a Consensus Bug in NBitcoin A divergence found where Bitcoin Core marked a transaction invalid but NBitcoin marked it valid. Discovered via differential fuzzing — fuzzing two implementations simultaneously and comparing outputs. Lightning fuzzing and Bitcoin fuzzing continue to find subtle mismatches between CLN, LND, LDK, BTCD, etc. NBitcoin maintainer patched the issue and cut a release the same day. Importance for enterprise shops using .NET (BTCPayServer, Zebedee, large corporate stacks). ⚡ ZmnSCPxj's New Lightning Optimization: Private Key Handovers A proposal for more efficient on-chain HTLC resolution. If a Lightning channel's full balance ends up on one side, that party can be handed the ephemeral private key to spend HTLCs directly. Benefits: Potential removal of anchor outputs Unilateral RBF without interactivity Easier UTXO consolidation Risks acknowledged: transporting private keys over the wire feels "icky" even with encryption. Not a re-architecture of Lightning — but an efficiency hack for edge cases. 🚨 Critical React Server Components Vulnerability A severe RCE (remote code execution) flaw in several React 19 builds. Affects most Next.js apps created or updated in 2025 due to default server components. Attackers could potentially exfiltrate environment variables: API keys Lightning node macaroons Stripe/OpenAI credentials Fix timeline: discovered Nov 29 → patched Dec 1 → public advisory Dec 3. Advice: upgrade React/Next.js immediately and rotate environment secrets. 🎧 Bitcoin Wrapped 2025 — Year-in-Review A custom end-of-year highlight reel for the Atlanta BitDevs Socratic Seminar series. Some of the big recurring themes: Covenants — CTV, CSFS, OP_TAPLEAF_UPDATE_VERIFY, and endless debate Quantum — threat models, timelines, algorithmic risk Regulatory drama — ETF approvals, treasury strategies, debanking, global restrictions BitVM — hype, skepticism, experimentation Fork proposals — CTV+CSFS and RDTS as the two most publicly mobilized Corporate Bitcoin treasuries — and whether they should become Lightning service providers Hackathon wins from the ATL BitLab community A recognition that Bitcoin is no longer niche — it's fully mainstream technical culture Links Mentioned BIP 89 (Chain Code Delegation) BIP 110 (Reduced-Data Temporary Soft Fork) NBitcoin project Bitcoin Fuzzing library Lightning Fuzz Delving Bitcoin posts from ZmnSCPxj React / Next.js CVE advisory Bitcoin Wrapped 2025 (ATL BitLab) Closing Notes Alex wraps up his final show of the year with a thank-you to listeners, welcomes suggestions for 2026 topics, and encourages everyone to find BitDevs Radio Hour on Fountain to send a boost.

Dec 8, 202551 min

BRH-003: BitDevs Radio Hour #3 – Zeus Wallet, Graduated Wallets, eCash, and the Future of Bitcoin UX

Live from ATL BitLab, Stephen DeLorme and Alex Lewin sit down with Evan Kaloudis, founder of Zeus, one of Bitcoin's most beloved Lightning wallets. This episode dives deep into the design trade-offs of non-custodial Lightning, the emergence of "graduated wallets," eCash systems like Cashu and Fedimint, statechain-based systems like Spark, and the future of Bitcoin payments UX. The conversation ranges from practical LSP economics to the viability of Ark, Spark, and other L2 proposals, as well as Evan's views on privacy, trust models, griefing attacks, covenants, and how wallets should guide users up the self-custody ladder. Plus: merchant adoption, credit-card fee wars, and a closing reflection on how AI is reshaping modern engineering and Bitcoin development. Guest Evan Kaloudis – Founder of Zeus, the mobile Lightning wallet that began as a remote node controller in 2019 and has since evolved into a full Lightning stack with embedded LND, LSP functionality, swaps, eCash capabilities, and B2B onboarding tools.

Dec 5, 20251h 20m

BRH-002: BitDevs Radio Hour #2 - Cluster Mempool Merged, Jack Mallers De-banked

It's time for another BitDevs Radio Hour! Alex Lewin and Stephen DeLorme discuss some of the latest technical developments in Bitcoin. This conversation covers topics like the merging of Cluster Mempool into Bitcoin Core, preventing lightning pinning attacks with P2A and v3 transactions, the drama over Jack Maller's getting debanked by Chase, and other topics.

Dec 1, 202553 min

BRH-001: BitDevs Radio Hour #1 - Bitcoin Kernel Project, Soft Fork Debate, BIPs Process Update

The very first BitDevs Radio Hour! Alex Lewin and Stephen DeLorme discuss some of the latest technical developments in Bitcoin. This conversation covers topics like the Bitcoin Kernel Project, recent soft fork related debates and internet drama, and updates to the Bitcoin Improvement Proposal process with Murch's motion activate BIP3. Bonus: El Salvadaro smash buys the dip and Coinbase brings back ICOs.

Nov 24, 20251h 11m

EVNT-008: Andrew Lunde: Uncancelable Names: Building Identity on Bitcoin - Atlanta BitDevs

Can Bitcoin replace DNS? Andrew Lunde presents Spaces Protocol, a permissionless naming system anchored on the Bitcoin blockchain. Learn how auctions determine ownership of top-level names like "@bitcoin," the technical challenges of browser integration, and the trade-offs between decentralization and scalability. Discover how $120,000 in Bitcoin has already been burned through the auction process, the role of DHT nodes in storing metadata, and why this approach may recreate the centralization problems it aims to solve. Show Notes: 00:00 Opening Quote: Uncancelable Identity 00:30 Event Recording and Podcast Information 01:02 Sponsor Message: ATL BitLab 02:05 Introduction to Spaces Protocol and Permissionless Systems 04:14 What is Spaces Protocol? Sovereign Bitcoin Identity 05:39 Andrew Lunde's Background and Decentralized Systems 07:19 History of Decentralized Naming Attempts 09:20 Why Previous Projects Failed 11:57 The Centralization Problem with DNS 15:25 Censorship Examples: Malaysia and Catalonia 18:49 Certificate Authority Vulnerabilities 19:34 China's Internet Controls and Nostr 21:55 The Case for "Uncancelable" Names 26:46 Spaces Protocol Technical Overview 29:30 Auction Process and Community Identifiers 33:33 Hierarchy vs Flat Namespace Debate 35:11 Subspace Creation and On-Chain Registration 38:35 Why Top-Level Name Ownership is Required 42:39 Fabric DHT and Distributed Storage 45:19 Auction Mechanics: 10-Day Process 49:27 Bitcoin Burning and No Pre-mine Policy 51:23 Bid Refunding and Transaction Structure 54:55 Registration and Permanent Burning 57:30 Name Expiration and Escheat Process 01:00:36 Transaction Fees and Sustainability Concerns 01:04:00 Explorer Demo: $120,000 Bitcoin Burned 01:13:34 High-Value Auctions: Bitcoin, AI, Single Letters 01:16:03 Strategy Auction Case Study 01:21:09 Start9 Integration and Future Plans 01:23:08 Browser Integration Challenges 01:25:03 DNS Resolution Workarounds 01:26:37 Multiple Records and Subspace Management

Oct 30, 20251h 28m

SOV-022: Matt Hill from Start9 - The Sovereign Computing Show

Start9 CEO Matt Hill joins Jordan Bravo to discuss the evolution of sovereign computing and the upcoming StartOS 0.4.0 release. Learn about Start9's mission to democratize server administration, their revolutionary new networking capabilities, plans for an open-source router, and innovative community programs for scaling support and development. Plus: why dignity matters as much as privacy and security in computing. Show Notes: https://atlbitlab.com/podcast/sov-022-matt-hill-start9 00:00 Opening Quote: Sovereign Computing Definition 00:33 Introduction and Show Sponsorship 01:51 Welcome and Sovereign Computing Origins 03:21 What is Sovereign Computing? 04:54 Privacy vs Confidentiality and the Dignity Factor 06:15 The Undignified Reality of Modern Computing 08:37 Making Server Administration Accessible 10:00 Democratizing Advanced Computing Skills 11:42 Familiar User Experience Design Philosophy 14:09 Learning from Mobile OS Evolution 15:45 Bringing Linux Admin Experience "Above the Hood" 18:05 StartOS Evolution: From 0.0.1 to 0.3.5.1 19:28 Dependency Management and Configuration Breakthroughs 20:17 Moving from Docker to Custom Container Runtime 21:33 StartOS 0.4.0: Complete Architecture Rewrite 24:44 Two Years of Development Hell and Breakthrough 26:30 Custom LXC Container Runtime Development 27:35 Advanced Networking Capabilities in 0.4.0 28:29 Granular Interface Control Example 31:49 Private Domains and DNS Management 35:06 The "Digital IKEA" Philosophy 36:34 VPN Tunneling and Network Abstractions 37:57 Start9 vs Tailscale Comparison 41:13 Router Hardware Prototypes and Development 46:47 Router as Standalone vs Integrated Product 52:00 StartOS and Router Integration Benefits 53:26 Router Release Timeline: Not Before Mid-2026 54:44 Community Tech Program: Scaling Support 01:00:18 Community Developer Program Announcement 01:05:02 Package Development and Crowdfunding Model 01:11:56 AI in Development: Limited but Useful 01:17:01 Self-Hosting AI Challenges and Hardware Limitations 01:24:37 TabConf 2025: Workshop and Package Development 01:26:55 Conclusion

Sep 16, 20251h 28m

SOV-021: Google Kills Android Sideloading: The iOS-ification Begins - The Sovereign Computing Show

Google is making Android more like iOS by blocking "sideloading" of unverified apps starting next year. Jordan Bravo breaks down why "sideloading" is a psyop term designed to make normal software installation seem dangerous, how Google's new developer KYC requirements will kill freedom tech, and why this gradual "boiling of the frog" approach threatens projects like GrapheneOS. Plus a chilling reminder from former NSA/CIA director Michael Hayden: "We kill people based on metadata." Show Notes: https://atlbitlab.com/podcast/sov-021-google-kills-android-sideloading-metadata-surveillance-state 00:00 Opening Quote: Satoshi KYC Example 00:41 Introduction and Show Sponsorship 01:59 Solo Episode Format and Holiday Week 02:47 Google Blocks Android Sideloading Starting 2026 03:12 "Sideloading" is a Psyop Term 04:24 Apple's Security vs Freedom Model 04:44 Google's New Developer KYC Requirements 06:28 Developer Identity Verification Requirements 07:14 Impact on Freedom Technologies - Satoshi Example 07:47 GrapheneOS and De-Googled Android Safe (For Now) 08:43 Android Source Code Becoming Closed 10:02 Hope for Future Mobile Operating Systems 10:51 Ladybird Browser as Example of Ground-Up Development 11:19 State of Mobile Linux 12:07 Email and Boost Support Information 12:34 Metadata Collection: Signal vs WhatsApp Comparison -13:23 Signal's Minimal Metadata Footprint 13:43 WhatsApp Uses Signal Protocol but Collects Metadata 15:11 What Metadata Can Reveal About You 15:34 Michael Hayden Quote: "We Kill People Based on Metadata" 16:38 Breaking Down the Hayden Quote 17:30 Importance of Minimizing Metadata Leakage 18:00 Fighting Back Against Surveillance State 18:24 Conclusion and Next Episode Preview

Sep 4, 202519 min

SOV-020: The Real Cost of "Free" Software - The Sovereign Computing Show

Not all "free" software is actually free - you're often paying with your data, privacy, or through deceptive subscription traps. In this episode, Jordan Bravo and Stephen DeLorme break down the business models behind the software you use daily, from ethical freemium approaches like Tailscale to exploitative data harvesting like Gmail. They explore managed hosting models, the pros and cons of subscriptions versus one-time payments, and expose dark patterns that trick users into unwanted charges. Plus updates on Jordan's private SIM card journey and news about Google's forced Android changes and Linux desktop growth. Show Notes: https://atlbitlab.com/podcast/sov-020-real-cost-of-software 00:00 Jordan's Opening Quote on Data-Subsidized Software 00:38 Introduction and ATL BitLab Sponsorship 01:56 Welcome and Contact Information 02:22 Jordan's Private SIM Card Update 02:48 - The "Pick Two" Dilemma: Private, Fast, Convenient 03:17 - Mint Mobile: Private and Fast but Inconvenient 04:03 - AT&T Prepaid: Convenient but Extremely Slow (3 vs 913 Mbps) 05:09 - US Mobile Blocks Anonymous Payment Methods 05:50 News: Google Forced to Open Android in Epic Games Victory 07:51 - Court Orders Google to Stop Monopolistic Practices 08:55 - Implications for Alternative App Stores 10:29 News: Linux Desktop Market Share Hits 6% 11:26 - Steam Deck and Gaming Driving Adoption 12:44 - Steam's Proton Compatibility Layer 14:07 - Privacy-Focused Users and Celebrity Endorsements 16:49 - AI/ML Workloads Favor Linux 17:57 Main Topic: Software Business Models 18:42 - Why Business Models Matter for Users 19:33 - Paying for Good Software vs "Free" Alternatives 20:17 Unethical Model: Data-Subsidized "Free" Software 20:43 - Gmail Example: How "Free" Services Really Work 22:58 Ethical Model: Tailscale's Enterprise Freemium Approach 25:12 - Pure Freemium vs Data Collection Hybrid 26:47 - When Freemium Goes Wrong 27:17 Managed Hosting: Element and Nextcloud Examples 29:10 One-Time Payment vs Subscription Models 29:46 - Adobe's Transition to Creative Cloud 31:07 - Accessibility vs Long-Term Value Trade-offs 33:21 - The Rise of Overpriced SaaS Tools 36:39 - Importance of Transparent Pricing Models 38:22 Dark Patterns and Deceptive Practices 39:10 - Jordan's Examples of Subscription Traps 40:00 - Stephen's ClassPass Cancellation Nightmare 43:09 - Multiple Deceptive Pattern Types Identified 44:44 - Hall of Shame: Major Companies Using Dark Patterns 46:04 Conclusion: Choosing Ethical Software Business Models Links Jordan Bravo Boost in on Fountain.FM Epic Games vs Google Court Decision Linux Desktop Market Share Statistics Deceptive Patterns Types and Examples "How I Broke Up With Adobe" by James Lee (Animation) PewDiePie's "I Installed Linux (so should you)"

Aug 26, 202546 min

SOV-019: How to Choose Sovereign Software - The Sovereign Computing Show

Not all software is created equal when it comes to digital sovereignty. In this episode, Jordan Bravo and Stephen DeLorme break down their framework for evaluating software that respects your freedom and privacy. They cover why open source isn't always a guarantee, how to spot healthy vs abandoned projects on GitHub, the importance of data export capabilities, and sustainable business models that won't disappear overnight. Plus, news about Samsung killing bootloader unlocks, EU age verification requirements, and reviews of new authenticator apps from Proton and Ente. Show Notes: https://atlbitlab.com/podcast/how-to-choose-sovereign-software 00:00 Jordan's Opening Quote on Software Choice 00:27 Introduction and ATL BitLab Sponsorship 01:45 Welcome and Contact Information 01:55 News: Samsung Kills Custom ROM Support 02:53 - No More Bootloader Unlocks on Samsung Devices 04:48 - Security Trade-offs with Unlocked Bootloaders 05:50 - Samsung's Motivations: Security vs Control 07:43 News: EU Age Verification Requirements 08:40 - Digital Sovereignty Alarm from Privacy Advocates 09:42 - EU's Contradictory Privacy Stance 12:39 - Decentralized Identity vs Google Monopoly 14:52 Proton Authenticator: Google Authenticator Alternative 16:32 - Open Source 2FA with Zero-Knowledge Sync 18:04 - Security Concerns of All-in-One Solutions 22:50 - Standalone App, No Proton Account Required 23:41 Ente Auth: Self-Hostable 2FA Alternative 24:55 - F-Droid Support and Open Source Commitment 25:48 Main Topic: How to Choose Sovereign Software 26:11 - Open Source as a Starting Point 26:56 - Cross-Platform and Alternative App Stores 27:36 - No Vendor Lock-In and Data Export 28:35 - Why Software Choice Matters Long-Term 29:48 Stephen's Framework for Evaluating Software 30:17 - Investigating "Open Source" Claims 31:38 - Checking GitHub Activity and Maintenance 34:58 - How to Evaluate GitHub Projects Live Demo 38:11 - Understanding GitHub Issues as Health Indicators 42:27 - Contributors and Community Health 43:38 - Open Standards and File Formats 46:29 - UI/UX Quality Matters for Daily Drivers 50:32 - Sustainable Business Models and Monetization 54:34 Conclusion and Future Episode Tease

Aug 12, 202555 min

SOV-018: Private GPS & Maps: Ditch Google and Apple - The Sovereign Computing Show

Your location data is one of the most sensitive pieces of information you share, but are you trusting Google and Apple with every place you go? In this episode, Jordan Bravo and Stephen DeLorme explore private alternatives to mainstream navigation apps that don't track your movements. They cover privacy-focused options like Magic Earth and Organic Maps built on Open Street Maps, reveal how to use Waze on GrapheneOS without Google Play Services, and discuss the ultimate privacy solution: standalone Garmin GPS devices. Plus, news about Proton's new AI assistant Lumo and the company's concerning move away from Switzerland due to emerging surveillance laws. Show Notes: https://atlbitlab.com/podcast/private-gps-and-maps 00:00 Why Privacy Laws Can't Be Trusted - Jordan's Opening Quote 00:10 Introduction and ATL BitLab Sponsorship 01:32 Welcome and Contact Information 02:27 News: Proton Announces Lumo AI Assistant 03:35 - Proton's Privacy Claims for Lumo 05:31 - Testing Lumo's Capabilities and Models 12:22 - Privacy Trade-offs vs Google/OpenAI 13:28 - Proton vs Big Tech Business Models 15:10 - Proton Moving Infrastructure Out of Switzerland 16:21 - Swiss Privacy Laws Under Threat 17:18 - Jordan's Take on Privacy Law Volatility 17:35 - European "Euro Stack" Initiative 20:27 Main Topic: Private GPS and Navigation 21:12 Introduction to Open Street Maps 22:00 Magic Earth: Premium Privacy Navigation App 23:50 - $0.99/year pricing model 24:48 - Jordan's experience with Magic Earth 26:20 - Search limitations vs Google Maps 29:22 Organic Maps: Free but Limited UX 30:40 Waze on GrapheneOS: Surprising Discovery 33:14 Garmin Standalone GPS: Ultimate Privacy 34:30 - Benefits of dedicated navigation device 37:24 - Garmin dash cam capabilities 38:22 - Garmin watches for privacy-conscious users 39:39 BTC Map: Bitcoin Business Directory 43:00 Mapbox for Developers 45:28 Boost Segment: Anonymous and Keith Sharp 47:17 Conclusion and Contact Information

Jul 29, 202548 min

SOV-017: The Cypherpunk Manifesto - The Sovereign Computing Show

Jordan Bravo and Stephen DeLorme dive deep into Eric Hughes' groundbreaking 1993 Cypherpunk Manifesto, exploring how this foundational document predicted Bitcoin, anonymous transaction systems, and modern digital privacy tools. They discuss the historical context of cryptography being illegal, the evolution from military-controlled encryption to widespread adoption, and how today's privacy-focused services like Mullvad exemplify the manifesto's principles. The hosts examine why "cypherpunks write code" and how this philosophy continues to drive sovereign computing solutions today. Show Notes: https://atlbitlab.com/podcast/cypherpunk-manifesto 00:00 Introduction and Bitcoin's Anonymous Transaction Systems 00:33 Welcome and ATL BitLab Sponsorship 01:54 New Dedicated Sovereign Computing Show Feed Announcement 03:23 Introduction to the Cypherpunk Manifesto 04:16 Reading Eric Hughes' Cypherpunk Manifesto (1993) 10:47 Analysis: Bitcoin as Anonymous Transaction System 2:04 Minimum Information Transactions (Mullvad, IVPN Examples) 13:11 Historical Context of Personal Computers and the Web 16:47 When Cryptography Was Illegal - Military Weapon Classification 20:51 Supreme Court Rules Encryption as Free Speech 22:21 Bitcoin White Paper as Cypherpunk Goals Implementation 24:28 Satoshi's Use of Decades of Cryptographic Research

Jul 22, 202536 min

SOV-016: Privacy Violations and Self-Hosting Wins - The Sovereign Computing Show

Jordan Bravo and Stephen DeLorme return with a news-packed episode covering the latest privacy violations and surveillance schemes. They discuss Trump's plan to create a master database of Americans using Palantir, WhatsApp AI accidentally leaking user phone numbers, Meta and Yandex exploiting Android phones to track browsing habits, and Ford's patent for cars that report speeding drivers. Plus, Jordan shares updates on his sovereign computing journey including anonymous phone services, Alby Hub lightning setup, and self-hosted lightning addresses. Show Notes: https://atlbitlab.com/podcast 00:00 Introduction and Digital Footprint Philosophy 00:35 Welcome to Sovereign Computing Show 00:51 ATL BitLab Sponsorship 01:55 Production Updates and Schedule Changes 03:18 News: Trump Taps Palantir for Master Database on Americans 06:02 Discussion: Government Data Collection Reality 08:50 Advice: Minimizing Digital Footprints 09:42 Personal Anecdote: Marketing Work with Surveillance Tech 13:17 News: WhatsApp AI Mistakenly Shares User's Phone Number 18:07 Analysis: LLM Context and Security Rules 24:01 WhatsApp Metadata and AI Concerns 24:59 News: Meta and Yandex Android Tracking Exploit 28:34 Technical Details: localhost Port Listening 30:56 Instagram Microphone Surveillance Discussion 34:23 News: Ford Patents Car Surveillance Technology 38:37 Future of Autonomous Vehicles and Privacy 40:06 Privacy Alternative: Toyota Hilux No-Frills Truck 42:08 Jordan's Sovereign Computing Updates 42:31 Text Verify for Anonymous Phone Verification 45:12 Steven's Experience with Simple Login App 48:01 Mint Mobile Payment Issues and AT&T Alternative 49:55 Self-Hosting: Albi Hub Lightning Node Setup 51:48 Self-Custodial Podcast Boosts with Podverse 52:09 Self-Hosted Lightning Address with RustDress 54:20 Nix Package Repository Work 55:05 Wrap-up and Contact Information 55:46 Outro and Bitcoin Tips

Jul 16, 202556 min