Bitcoin pioneer and developer Peter Todd, following the publication of a controversial investigation by the New York Times that names Adam Back as the true Satoshi Nakamoto, issued a statement defending his colleague and exposing the methods of modern journalism. In his latest post on X , Todd directly accused documentary creators of manipulation.
Bitcoin pioneer warns of "worse outcomes" for cryptocurrency devs
Commenting on his participation in the controversial HBO film "Money Electric: The Bitcoin Mystery," which came out in 2024, in which he was portrayed as the creator of Bitcoin, Todd explained that he was never informed that the film would focus on identifying Satoshi, and he was brought in under the guise of just discussing the history of technology.
This bait-and-switch tactic, Todd argues, is parasitism and undermines the very foundation of industry integrity.
1) I wasn't told they were making it about finding Satoshi.
— Peter Todd (@peterktodd) April 8, 2026
2) Someone has to talk to journalists. Failing to do so has even worse outcomes.
Todd described the latest NYT article about Adam Back as another attempt to “parasitize on a productive society.” He insists that such exposés are not only technically flawed but also dangerous, as they turn developers into targets for criminals by attributing to them ownership of Satoshi’s mythical billions.
The resulting physical security threats create a hostile environment for those building the future of Bitcoin.
Responding to users asking why he and other opinion leaders, including Adam Back, continue to engage with the press at all, Todd described it as “choosing the lesser of two evils.” According to Todd, if experts go completely silent, journalists will start producing even more absurd conspiracy theories without any resistance from facts.
u.today