We were told the internet would set us free and connect us. Instead, it built the most efficient isolating cages in human history. Our digital lives—our content, our attention, our friendships, our comments, our likes—have all been prostituted. We are not the users of Facebook or Google; we are the product, and our data is the commodity sold to the highest bidder.
But years ago, a crack appeared in their monopoly. It was a data protocol called Bitcoin.
Bitcoin proved something revolutionary: that we could build a global, trusted system without a central kingpin. No CEO, no board of directors. Just code, consensus, and an incorruptible ledger that belongs to the network itself. It showed us that vital utilities—like money—could be owned by everyone and no one.
This same blueprint, is now our escape route from digital data brothels.
Imagine a world where you own your digital self. Your social profile, your creative work, your search history—it’s not stored on an Amazon server farm, but on a decentralized network. You hold the keys. And when a company, or an AI, needs your data to learn, it doesn’t just steal it. It pays you. Directly. Instantly. This is the promise of a data-layer built on blockchain: turning tech giants from feudal lords and data pimps, into mere service providers on a utility network we all control.
This isn't a distant dream. The tools are being built now. Platforms like Keet and Nostr are proving we can have open source social media. Open-source AI and decentralized storage solutions are also laying the groundwork.
But the power of this model doesn't stop with our data. The same principle of transparent, verifiable trust can save us from corruption of our physical devices.
We've just seen how vulnerable we are. From Intel's Management Engine, to Pegasus and now, exploding pagers, all show us that now our hardware can be lethally weaponized.
Fortunately, RISK-V and Linux are being built as escape hatches on the hardware and software front. But imagine a supply chain where every step in the manufacture and distribution is immutably logged. Any tampering or unauthorized injection, would be instantly viewable globally as a red flag. This is already being pioneered for everything from food safety to cross-border trade.
It’s the same cure for two different diseases: the prostitution of our data and the sabotage of our hardware.
The battle for our future is between two models. One is the old, opaque kingdom, where lords like Ellison, Altman, Bezos and Zuckerberg control the algorithms and the backdoors. The other is a new republic, built on a foundation of open code and verifiable truth.
Bitcoin gave us back our money. Now, its underlying technology gives us a path to take back our data, our privacy, and ultimately, our trust in the world around us. The choice is finally ours.