HBO documentary claims Peter Todd is Satoshi Nakamoto
Community disappointed after highly anticipated release
Unassuming Bitcoin developer Peter Todd has quickly denied claims made last night in an HBO documentary that he created the cryptocurrency.
With the news of the buzzworthy Money Electric: The Bitcoin Mystery, the crypto community was ecstatic to witness a journalistic take on Satoshi Nakamoto's identity. In what was thought to be the ultimate crypto bombshell, the show was expected to unravel the secret identity of the elusive Bitcoin founder.
Ahead of the documentary's release, Polymarket punters bet on prominent figures like Nick Szabo, Len Sassaman, and Adam Back, among others.
However, just hours before airing, leaks suggested that the HBO documentary pointed to former Bitcoin developer Peter Todd as Satoshi Nakamoto. This caused quite a stir and raised eyebrows even before the show officially hit the screens.
Adding to the doubt, Peter Todd himself blatantly denied claims. He told CoinDesk in an email that if he were to be identified as Satoshi, filmmaker Cullen Hoback was simply “grasping at straws.” Going further, he directly mentioned on X that he is not Satoshi.
I'm not Satoshi.
— Peter Todd (@peterktodd) October 8, 2024
Nevertheless, the HBO documentary stayed true to this unexpected yet unsurprising claim: Peter Todd as Satoshi Nakamoto. This verdict came after all the hype previously surrounding Nick Szabo, Len Sassaman, Adam Back, and other contenders.
Unsurprisingly, crypto enthusiasts and onlookers were not convinced of HBO's verdict.
As for the Polymarket poll, Fortune Magazine finance and crypto editor Jeff Roberts mentioned how punters were completely blindsided, as Peter Todd was not even included in the list.
Also lots of folks got rekt on Polymarket. Peter Todd nowhere to be found! pic.twitter.com/1QHGXOfSTi
— Jeff Roberts (@jeffjohnroberts) October 9, 2024
In an X post, BitMEX Research did not hold back, expressing that the “evidence for this claim in the film is absolutely pathetic”. They went further in verbalizing their disappointment, dubbing it flat-out wrong.
Summary of HBO documentary
— BitMEX Research (@BitMEXResearch) October 9, 2024
Around 15 minutes of the long film is dedicated to trying to indicate that @peterktodd is Satoshi. The “evidence” for this claim in the film is absolutely pathetic, being both wrong and inconsequential at the same time.
Seems they just perhaps added… https://t.co/l20s4FQfes
Washington Post reporter Drew Harwell cited that much of the evidence was based on how Peter Todd allegedly “forgot to switch back profiles when he was posting as Satoshi”—meaning that a “classic forum goof” was used to crack one of the internet's greatest unresolved cases.
This is the post the documentary bases much of its evidence on: that Peter Todd forgot to switch back profiles when he was posting as Satoshi. If true, the biggest mystery of the internet was solved by a classic forum goof pic.twitter.com/vnCcfvD8AQ
— Drew Harwell (@drewharwell) October 9, 2024
The crypto community had high hopes for American filmmaker Cullen Hoback's documentary. However, rather than settling the score, the show ended up fuelling the controversy even more, leaving enthusiasts disappointed.
