Cardano Founder Disputes Bitcoin's Quantum Solution, Claims It Won't Protect Satoshi's Coins

Bitcoin developers have proposed a solution to protect against quantum attacks by freezing 8 million coins. However, according to Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson, this solution, known as BIP-361, is technically flawed and will not save the network's oldest coins, including Satoshi Nakamoto's holdings. Hoskinson claims that BIP-361 is misleadingly presented as a soft fork when it would actually require a hard fork, as it would invalidate existing signature schemes. A hard fork would be necessary to implement this change, which contradicts Bitcoin's development culture. The proposal suggests using zero-knowledge proofs tied to BIP-39 seed phrases to reclaim frozen funds, but Hoskinson argues this approach will not work for approximately 1.7 million bitcoins created before 2013, including those associated with Satoshi's early mining activity. These coins were generated using a different key derivation method and would remain permanently frozen if the proposal passes. Jameson Lopp, co-author of BIP-361, has acknowledged that the proposal is a rough idea and not a finalized specification. Hoskinson's criticism extends beyond the technical aspects, arguing that Bitcoin's lack of formal on-chain governance hinders the network's ability to resolve tradeoffs through a structured process.