Guest
Chris Larsen
#895 Takeaways From My Conversation With Chris Larsen, Co-Founder of Ripple
- Pomp discusses his conversation with Ripple co-founder Chris Larson about the "Change the Code, Not the Climate" ESG campaign criticizing Bitcoin's proof-of-work energy consumption. - Bitcoin mining obtains approximately 66% of energy from renewables (3x the US average), contradicting claims of excessive environmental impact. - Bitcoin's energy consumption does not scale linearly with price; Bitcoin's price appreciated 4,300% in five years while energy use increased 10x—a fundamentally different relationship. - The claim that Bitcoin mining will consume 4% of global energy production is mathematically implausible and would require Bitcoin to reach $2.3 million per coin. - Larson declined to answer questions about whether Ripple or its executives funded prior proof-of-work critiques, raising concerns about transparency. - Pomp advocates for a code fork and free-market competition rather than awareness campaigns without proposed technical solutions.
#892 Bitcoin & Climate Change w/ Chris Larsen
- Chris Larsen, co-founder of Ripple, is funding a $5 million ad campaign called "Change the Code, Not the Climate" that advocates for modifying Bitcoin's proof-of-work consensus mechanism to reduce energy consumption. - Both speakers agree decentralized digital currencies solve real problems in legacy finance and that Bitcoin must remain secure, but disagree on whether the current energy consumption trajectory is sustainable or acceptable. - Larsen argues Bitcoin's energy use will reach approximately 1% of global end-user electricity in five years if current trends continue, creating a breaking point for institutional adoption and regulatory tolerance. - The campaign focuses on awareness-building and inspiring developers to innovate within proof-of-work rather than forcing a specific code change; Larsen emphasizes 50 "influential" miners, exchanges, and developers could convince the broader community, similar to the block size wars. - Larsen contends the code currently incentivizes cheapest energy (often fossil fuels) rather than renewables, and advocates for proof-of-work modifications that could make mining carbon-negative or at least climate-neutral. - Both agree markets are self-correcting but differ on whether Bitcoin's growth trajectory poses an unacceptable climate risk requiring proactive intervention before the market corrects it.