What is Consensus: Rules without Rulers

Who is in charge of Bitcoin? Why is it so hard to change the rules? The governance model of Bitcoin, where there can be transparent and neutral rules without rulers, without regulators, is confusing to most people. It is a natural human inclination not only to appeal to authority but to see the absence of a leader as an invitation, a "job opening." Bitcoin has resisted this for nine years, but it is still immature and trying to find its potential. What the failure of SegWit2x demonstrated was not that this group one and that group lost, but that consensus is an overwhelming majority system. Without it, you are unlikely to succeed. The question is not whether we will scale, but how. The battles we've faced so far are tiny compared to what lies ahead. The choice you all make between convenience and liberty, between safety and freedom, will open up opportunities for billions tomorrow.

This talk took place at the Swedish Bitcoin Association event on November 19th 2017 in Stockholm, Sweden.

Andreas M. Antonopoulos is a technologist and serial entrepreneur who has become one of the most well-known and respected figures in bitcoin.