Len Sassaman's Widow Claims He Was Not Satoshi Nakamoto

The mystery surrounding Bitcoin’s creator Satoshi Nakamoti, is reignited with HBO’s new documentary, Money Electric: The Bitcoin Mystery, airing tonight. It has been hinted that the show might reveal Nakamoto’s identity, a topic that has been grabbing attention since Bitcoin’s launch in 2009. Polymarket bets suggest that Len Sassaman is actually Satoshi Nakamoto but recently, Meredith Patterson, Len Sassaman’s widow, denied that he was not Satoshi nor did the HBO team contact her or consult her during the production of the documentary. Despite her denying the speculations, Bram Cohen, Sassaman’s close friends remains open to the possibility.

Meredith L Patterson, Len Sassaman’s widow, denied the speculation that Len Sassaman was Satoshi Nakamoto in an interview with DL News. HBO never contacted her when making the documentary. Adam Back also denied it many times and said that it is a good thing that no one knows who… https://t.co/xZYpP2BIUf

— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) October 8, 2024

Polymarket bets on the Identity of Satoshi — Polymarket bet which speculates one of these candidates to be Satoshi. (Source: Polymarket)

According to the documetary, the other candidates include Nick Szabo and Han Finney. With Sassaman’s demise in 2011, coinciding with with Nakamoto’s disappearance, fueled the speculations further. Moreover, references in Nakamoto’s writings to a 1999 conference near Leuven, where Sassaman earned his PhD, add fuel to the fire.

Patterson Denying Satoshi Claims

Patterson has been publicly denying the speculations that her late husband Len Sassaman was Satoshi but this is how she has been defending the claims:

Technical Errors: Patterson highlighted the early design flaws in Bitcoin, such as the ability to send coins to an IP address, which she argues indicates a lack of expertise inconsistent with Sassaman’s capabilities as a cryptographer. She noted that these flaws were later corrected to enhance privacy, suggesting that knowledgeable developer would not have made such mistakes.
Platform Preferences: She pointed out that Sassaman was a Mac user, while early Bitcoin development was primarily focused on Linux. This discrepancy raises doubts his involvement as Satoshi required assistance for MacOS compatibility.
Lack of Consultation: Patterson expressed her surprise that HBO did not contact her during the production of the documentary emphasizing her belief in Sassaman’s non-involvement.

Adam Back also Denying the Speculations

Adam Back, who made significant contributions in the cryptocurrency, by inventing the Hashcash protocol, early involvement during the Bitcoin inception, enhanced Bitcoin’s scalability and security issues, has also denied being the creator of the Bitcoin by simply stating “not me”, in response to these speculations. He emphasizes that it is better that the identity is unknown as it allows the focus to be on the Bitcoin technology rather than its creator. He has expressed his skepticism about the upcoming HBO documentary, suggesting it will be likely incorrect regarding Satoshi’s identity.

The enduring fascination with Nakamoto seems to be never ending. Whether Money Electric will finally unvield Satoshi remains uncertain but it undoubtedly reignites an age-old debate about identity and innovation in the digital age.

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