The Satoshi Nakamoto Institute (SNI) stands as one of Bitcoin's most important educational and archival organizations, dedicated to preserving and advancing the original vision of cryptocurrency as outlined by Bitcoin's pseudonymous creator, Satoshi Nakamoto.
Since its founding in November 2013, the institute has become an essential resource for anyone seeking to understand Bitcoin's philosophical foundations and the cypherpunk tradition from which it emerged.
The Founding Story
The Satoshi Nakamoto Institute was founded in November 2013 by Michael Goldstein, Pierre Rochard, and Daniel Krawisz, three members of the Mises Circle at the University of Texas at Austin. The Mises Circle was a student organization dedicated to studying Austrian economics, focusing on thinkers like Ludwig von Mises, Friedrich Hayek, Murray Rothbard, and Hans-Hermann Hoppe.
The spark for creating the institute came when Cody Wilson of Defense Distributed gave a talk to the group about his early-stage project, which ignited their interest in Bitcoin in an unprecedented way. During the summer of 2013, Michael Goldstein met with Tuur Demeester at a Bitcoin meetup, where they joked that just as there was a Mises Institute for Austrian economics, there ought to be a Nakamoto Institute for crypto-anarchy.
What began as a joke became reality. In August 2013, Goldstein purchased the domain and created a basic HTML page to store some foundational materials, and by November 2013, he launched the actual website complete with a curated library of cypherpunk and crypto-anarchist literature, along with Satoshi's public writings.
Mission and Philosophy
The institute's mission is rooted in the recognition that Satoshi Nakamoto did not build Bitcoin in a vacuum, but rather stood on the shoulders of cryptographic giants and free software pioneers, from Timothy C. May and the Cypherpunks to Richard Stallman and Nick Szabo. The organization exists to preserve and continue the crypto-anarchist and Cypherpunk tradition of which Bitcoin is a part.
The founders envisioned SNI as a way to ensure that no matter what narratives might emerge around Bitcoin, there would always be a repository preserving the original crypto-anarchistic vision and the intellectual tradition that made Bitcoin possible.
Key Resources and Archives
The Satoshi Nakamoto Institute has become invaluable for its comprehensive digital archives and educational materials:
The Complete Satoshi
The institute maintains a complete collection of Satoshi Nakamoto's original writings and code from 2008 to 2012, including the Bitcoin whitepaper, emails from the Cryptography Mailing List, and forum posts from BitcoinTalk. This archive gives readers what has been called "the full Satoshi experience," allowing them to trace the evolution of Bitcoin's development through Satoshi's own words.
Curated Literature Library
The SNI library contains essential works that contextualize Bitcoin within the broader traditions of cryptography, digital cash, Austrian economics, and individual freedom. This collection includes seminal papers and manifestos from the cypherpunk movement and foundational texts that influenced Bitcoin's design philosophy.
The SNI Mempool
The Mempool is a collection of original essays and articles by contemporary Bitcoin thinkers, building the case for why Bitcoin will displace competing currencies including altcoins, fiat money, and precious metals. Notable works include Pierre Rochard's "End the Fed: Hoard Bitcoins," "Fractional Reserve Banking is Obsolete," and "The Bitcoin Central Bank's Perfect Monetary Policy," as well as Daniel Krawisz's "The Proof-of-Work Concept" and "The Original Value of Bitcoins."
The SNI Crash Course
The Crash Course in Bitcoin Political Economy is an annotated bibliography of the Mempool, presenting a comprehensive case for Bitcoin's supremacy as a monetary system. Written primarily in 2013-2014, these articles remain timeless resources for understanding Bitcoin's economic and political implications.
Active Projects and Content
The institute continues to produce educational content and expand its offerings:
The Reorg Podcast
Launched in 2025, The Reorg is a podcast that takes a deep dive into the SNI archives, hosted by SNI president Michael Goldstein. The podcast provides historical context and contemporary commentary to examine which predictions proved correct and which ideas have been revised or invalidated since the original writings. The first episodes explore the SNI Mempool Crash Course, revisiting the original arguments for why Bitcoin would become the world reserve currency.
The Noded Bitcoin Podcast
Michael Goldstein and Pierre Rochard co-host and produce the Noded Bitcoin Podcast, which provides current events, technical news, and commentary to the Bitcoin community. Over the years, the podcast has featured interviews with influential figures including U.S. Representative Warren Davidson, Human Rights Foundation CSO Alex Gladstein, and numerous Bitcoin developers and researchers.
The Skeptics Collection
The institute maintains a unique archive documenting notable critics and skeptics of Bitcoin throughout its history. This collection provides crucial context for understanding the challenges and criticisms Bitcoin has faced over the years, helping the community learn from past debates.
Events and Community Engagement
While the Satoshi Nakamoto Institute primarily operates as an online resource, its founders actively participate in Bitcoin conferences and educational events. Recent talks include Michael Goldstein's "Satoshi Nakamoto Institute: Cultivating the Bitcoin Tradition" at the Bitcoin Takeover in Austin in March 2025, Pierre Rochard's "Bitcoin Mining Economics 101" at the Texas Energy & Mining Summit in May 2025, and Goldstein's "Hodl for Good" presentation at BitBlockBoom in Dallas in April 2025.
These speaking engagements allow the founders to share the institute's educational materials with broader audiences and continue building the Bitcoin community around its foundational principles.
Leadership and Organization
Michael Goldstein (Bitstein) serves as president of the Satoshi Nakamoto Institute. He has been instrumental in curating the institute's library and maintaining its philosophical focus on Bitcoin's original vision.
Pierre Rochard is a co-founder and has held various roles including treasurer. Pierre is also known for his work at Riot Platforms as VP of Research and has been a prominent voice in Bitcoin education and development.
Daniel Krawisz was a co-founding member who contributed significantly to the early Mempool articles and helped establish the institute's intellectual foundation.
Educational Impact for Builders
For Bitcoin builders and developers, the Satoshi Nakamoto Institute provides essential historical and philosophical context that goes beyond technical documentation. The archived materials offer insights into:
- Design Decisions: Understanding why Bitcoin was architected with specific technical choices
- Economic Principles: Grasping the Austrian economic theory and monetary policy behind Bitcoin
- Cypherpunk Ideals: Recognizing the freedom-oriented values that shaped Bitcoin's development
- Historical Precedents: Learning from previous attempts at digital cash and cryptographic money
This philosophical and historical framework helps developers make informed decisions that align with Bitcoin's foundational principles while building new applications, improvements, and Layer 2 solutions.
The Institute's Role in Bitcoin's Future
The Satoshi Nakamoto Institute believes that Bitcoin is only the beginning and aims to learn from the past and build toward the future through scholarship, community, and coding.
As a qualified 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, the institute accepts donations to help advance and preserve Bitcoin knowledge for the benefit of the entire Bitcoin community.
Visit: nakamotoinstitute.org
