🌉 The ₿ridge Report - #2

Welcome back to the second edition of The ₿ridge Report!

Y’all, thanks for playing me in Tic-Tac-Toe during my adventure across Austin. It has been a ton of fun connecting, earning your subscription, and of course getting a quick game in. Congrats to who got 3 in a row against me.

I’m not sure what sparked the idea of going with TTT other than I knew I wanted to have the opportunity to gain a real (although quick) connection before asking to scan my QR code. I found an approachable, creative way to do it and bantered with people from all over the world during SXSW - so far it has definitely paid off.

Tic-Tac-Toe proved to be a great way to achieve this because of its universal simplicity and understanding. It is a game for everyone.

Bitcoin should be the same - it’s money for everyone and is a better way to save wealth than the system we have today.

Every Bitcoin cycle gets labeled with a theme, and I believe these next 3 years is truly going to be known as the bridge cycle where we take the incredible products, tools, and services that have been built in the last 5+ years and prove that not only do they work, but they work better for merchants and customers. We are meeting people where they are and more and more continue to listen. It’s so exciting.

As Bitcoin adoption continues to penetrate the globe, more people will understand this and unlock the promises of a sound money system. Thanks again for subscribing and if you can think of anyone else who would benefit from this newsletter please share! It helps more than you know 🙏.

Today’s report will go as follows:

1. A “Blockchain Audit” - my ongoing Bitcoin journey and how I continue to see BTC integrate into the world and our broader culture.

2. The “Volatility Index” - a review of newsworthy articles, podcasts, and events of the week, an AI generated summary (using Grok for now), and my Dose of analysis.

Next week I plan to dive deeper into my background and Bitcoin journey as a Blockchain audit. For those interested get an overview here.

Aho.

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Blockchain Audit

J’s Bitcoin Journey: This week was an absolute banger at Bitcoin Park - Austin. The Bitcoin Commons has officially merged with Bitcoin Park and we now have the Park representing the 2 strongest Bitcoin cities in the United States (and the world), Austin and Nashville. Shoutout and congrats to Rod and Parker for this announcement and the energy here in ATX is only getting stronger.

SXSW - Taken Over.

From Tuesday to Saturday we hosted Bitcoin events including: an AI Hackathon, ABDC meetup, Bitcoin vs. CBDCs with ABC & the Human Rights Foundation (HRF), Pleblab’s Startup Day, Bitdevs, Takeover Day, and then a screening of the mining documentary Dirty Coin.

Each was unique and pure signal. It showed the absolute range of the industry spanning across the innovation of technology and cutting edge businesses with Bitcoin and AI, to privacy and payments, to the infrastructure of Bitcoin miners and energy producers, to the art and culture of design and an award winning documentary.

I see this as my thesis playing out - Bitcoin continues to get so ingrained into our culture that conversations I’m having about bitcoin don’t even need to be fully focused on Bitcoin. When the incentives align the connections and outcomes lead to growth.

An example of this further is the after party at Saturn’s Cocktail Bar on Congress. They accept bitcoin and everyone was having a good time and paying the bartenders directly with no intermediary required. Living in the future.

It was so rewarding to attend and work all these events, meet some incredible bitcoiners, and fully engage and partake in the positive direction that the industry is driving toward. Hosting over ~750 people over the course of the week with barely even a hitch just shows that the work and preparation we put into this was beyond worth it and was received so well.

The sheer concentration of thought leadership located in the Park throughout has been inspiring and energizing. The buy-in that the Austin community has towards building Bitcoin’s success is fundamental to what got me to move here.

Another year SXSW has been overtaken by Bitcoin. Onwards and upwards.

If you are interested in beginning to save in Bitcoin I currently recommend using Strike to set up purchases - this is one of the easiest Bitcoin Only exchanges (no crypto casino distractions) that provides a familiar, dependable experience.

Use my referral link to waive fees on your first $500 in BTC purchases: https://invite.strike.me/D2CTXV

Happy stacking. For more info on dollar cost averaging bitcoin click here.

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Volatility Index

• The United States Must Embrace Bitcoin Now: A Recap Of Bitcoin For America

• David Beats Goliath: Solo Miner Discovers Bitcoin Block #887,212 with Open-Source Bitaxe ASIC Miner

• We have the SBR now. Why NgD?

• Elon Musk claims X being targeted in ‘massive cyberattack’ as service goes down

The United States Must Embrace Bitcoin Now: A Recap Of Bitcoin For America

AI Summary: On March 11 Bitcoin Policy Institute (BPI) hosted the “Bitcoin For America” summit in Washington, D.C., following President Donald Trump’s executive order establishing a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve (SBR) and the White House’s first Crypto Summit. The event featured speakers like Senator Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) and Michael Saylor, who argued that the U.S. should lead globally in Bitcoin adoption, framing it as “freedom money” that aligns with American values and offers economic resilience. David Zell, BPI’s director, emphasized Bitcoin’s benefits for America and the world, while Vivek Ramaswamy suggested Bitcoin’s long-term returns could outpace traditional low-risk investments like U.S. Treasuries. The summit occurred amid broader U.S. policy shifts, including Trump’s appointment of David Sacks as “crypto czar” and discussions on integrating Bitcoin into national financial strategy, potentially as part of a “Bretton Woods 3.0” monetary system. The article positions Bitcoin as a strategic asset for U.S. economic leadership, despite challenges like volatility and regulatory hurdles, signaling a pivotal moment for its mainstream acceptance.

My Dose: There was a ton of great work to come out of the BPI’s summit talking about the importance of Bitcoin in securing America’s future. I am happy that we have some of the best people in the highest rooms fighting to integrate Bitcoin with the American Dream. We have to make sure that the promise of a self-sovereign asset like Bitcoin can provide is accessible to everyone.

From both top down and bottom up, that’s how Bitcoin’s growth progresses. Like I said, I view this cycle as the true bridge where we have the processes, people, and technology in place to officially meet people where they are at, and there will only be more listeners as we do it. This is just another instance of that from BPI.

David Beats Goliath: Solo Miner Discovers Bitcoin Block #887,212 with Open-Source Bitaxe ASIC Miner

AI Summary: On March 10, 2025, a solo Bitcoin miner using the open-source Bitaxe ASIC miner successfully mined Bitcoin block 887,212, earning a 3.125 BTC reward worth approximately $200,000, as reported by BitPerfect Solutions in a press release. This rare feat, detailed on X by cryptocurrency expert Marshall Long and verified by Mempool.space, highlights the miner’s use of the Bitaxe, a low-cost, DIY hardware device designed for individual miners, contrasting with the dominance of large mining operations using expensive ASICs. The achievement underscores the decentralized nature of Bitcoin, proving that individual miners can still compete, albeit rarely, against massive mining pools, as the Bitaxe’s open-source design and affordability (around $15 for key components like the BM1366 chip) lower barriers to entry. The story draws parallels to David defeating Goliath, emphasizing the miner’s perseverance and the Bitaxe’s role in enabling small-scale mining, with the hardware’s efficiency and community-driven development (via GitHub) gaining attention. This event has inspired the Bitcoin community, reinforcing the potential for solo mining despite the odds stacked against individuals in a network where large pools control most of the hashrate.

My Dose: Estimates suggest that the average amount a US citizen spends per year on lottery tickets is between $200-400. And the odds of winning are slim to none. But, I understand that people like to gamble and it’s the hope of winning that can drive belief and the idea to keep playing.

So, what if I told you that you can play the lottery every 10 minutes, while also helping secure the largest decentralized computer network in the world? That’s Bitaxe.

Now 2 blocks have been mined by a Bitaxe in the last ~8 months. Pretty cool to see and it’s a small but exciting step towards the future of solo mining to further secure the Bitcoin network.

We have the SBR now. Why NgD (number go down)?

AI Summary: Samson Mow's article on X discusses the recent drop in Bitcoin's price despite the establishment of the U.S. Strategic Bitcoin Reserve (SBR) under President Trump's executive order, which he views as a significant step toward normalizing Bitcoin for the general public. He explains that the price decline is a short-term market reaction influenced by factors such as traders "selling the news," over-leveraged traders getting liquidated, low liquidity over the weekend, and poor sentiment in traditional financial markets, rather than a rejection of the SBR's potential. Mow emphasizes that while the SBR—a pure Bitcoin-only reserve separate from other digital assets—is a game-changer for Bitcoin adoption, most people remain unaware of its significance, as Bitcoin enthusiasts are a niche, highly informed group compared to the average person. He predicts that as the U.S. begins to accumulate Bitcoin and other nations follow, the price will eventually rise significantly, but this will take time as the information disseminates and action follows. Mow concludes by urging readers to remain patient and plan accordingly, noting that entities like MicroStrategy and ETFs continue to absorb Bitcoin supply, setting the stage for future growth.

My Dose: I find myself perpetually bullish and it can be a little frustrating when the nominal USD price doesn’t reflect the value that I see in the network. However, there was a viral call from a X/Twitter user named Josh Mandell on the price. He predicted months ago that on Friday 3/14 Bitcoin would be at $84,000. This guy has a impressive, traditional Wall Street resume and now people are decrypting his tweets to call a price pump to $444,000 as a top for this cycle.

That would be fun.

Elon Musk claims X being targeted in ‘massive cyberattack’ as service goes down

AI Summary: X experienced multiple outages, affecting tens of thousands of users globally, with Downdetector reporting over 77,000 incidents, according to an Associated Press article. Musk attributed the disruptions to a “massive” and sustained cyberattack, claiming it involved “a lot of resources” and possibly a coordinated group or nation-state, though cybersecurity experts expressed skepticism about the scale and sophistication he described. The outages, which began around 9:45 UTC, were identified as distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks overwhelming X’s servers with rogue traffic, marking the third major disruption for the platform in recent weeks. X’s engineering team worked to mitigate the issue, and by Monday afternoon, service began stabilizing, though Musk later told Fox Business the attack originated from IP addresses in the Ukraine area. The incident drew attention to X’s vulnerability since Musk’s 2022 acquisition, amid ongoing challenges like layoffs, advertiser pullbacks, and regulatory scrutiny, but no official statement from X clarified the full scope or resolution of the attack.

My Dose: You know what didn’t go down this week?

The Bitcoin network.

Instances like these are important to call out because it shows the resilience and importance of securing the foundation of a global, decentralized monetary network. There is not a single point of failure for Bitcoin and this allows the network to be robust. With each block that gets added to the Blockchain, the network gets stronger. This is known as the Lindy Effect - the longer that Bitcoin stays around the more likely it is to stay around longer.

Bitcoin is a fire extinguisher. It’s an escape valve for when the products and services that we take for granted everyday may not be available to us.

Thanks for reading. See you next time!