The planned ad campaign by Chris Larsen, Ripple Co-founder and Executive Chairman, and Greenspace USA, which is advocating for code change to cut down energy use, has received harsh criticism.
When the Wall Street Journal reported it for the first time, Larsen confirmed the campaign and even explained the thinking behind it. Larsen is planning to put forward USD5 million into the ad campaign dubbed “Change the Code, Not the Climate,” targeting to alter Bitcoin’s proof of work (POW) consensus protocol.
“Change the Code, Not the Climate” Ad Targets Top Influencers
The ad campaign is expected to run in top publications, including New York Times, Politico, MarketWatch, Facebook, and The Wall Street Journal. It is also aimed at the most famous Bitcoin supporters, including Fidelity’s CEO Abby Johnson, Tesla’s CEO Elon Musk, and Block’s CEO Jack Dorsey.
The probability of such measures getting implemented already sounds shaky. However, Larsen indicates that 50 top miners, core developers, and exchanges hold power to drive the code change in Bitcoin. Such an attempt about five years ago failed even with the support of the largest startups in the industry, mainly because of backlash.
Larsen indicated the efforts of miners, such as Riot Blockchain (RIOT) and Argon Blockchain (ARGO), but insists that many are the miners repurposing old gas and old coal plants without being responsible stewards of the power they use. However, turning to renewable energy is not a solution because the proof of work (POW) protocol incentivizes miners to look for cheaper sources of energy.
- Suggested reading: Crypto Miners: Can they Help to Make the World Greener?
Although Larsen did not indicate the model he proposes to replace Bitcoin’s proof of work (POW) protocol, he was full of praise of Ethereum’s move to the proof of stake (POS) model. Ripple is already fighting allegations by the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) that it sold XRP cryptos as an unregistered security. However, Larsen indicates it will not be part of the effort.
Here are some reactions:
“When I think of why regulators should crack down on crypto the one greasy face that pops to mind is Chris Larsen. The Ripple execs are scum. Sorry!”
You’re a clown, you’re literally fighting PoW with printed paper that’s going to be wasted. You’re hosting your website on servers that also requires energy… you’re seriously a clown."
