Tesla CEO and SpaceX founder Elon Musk, initially skeptical about using Bitcoin as a currency on Mars, has now slightly warmed up to the idea. During an X Spaces titled ‘ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB) Approved,’ with ARK Invest CEO Cathie Wood, Musk expressed concerns about the significant time it takes to settle Bitcoin transactions, making it unsuitable for use on Mars.
Musk, who envisions building a Martian colony by 2050, stated, “It would make sense to use some kind of cryptocurrency on Mars, you couldn’t use Bitcoin, because the reconciliation is too long.” However, after some thought, he concluded that it might be feasible given the proximity of Earth and Mars to the sun — eight and twelve light minutes respectively. Despite this, he acknowledged the challenges that would arise.
“Perhaps you can use Bitcoin to some degree but it would be difficult to use it a lot on Mars,” Musk said. He suggested the potential need for a localized network on Mars, given the planet can be up to twenty light minutes away. Musk agreed with Bitcoin core developer Matt Corallo that Bitcoin’s slow transaction speed could be addressed through a localized Lightning Network.
Bitcoin’s transaction time is up to one hour due to its blockchain assembling transactions into 10-minute blocks, requiring confirmation of six blocks before finalizing the transaction. However, Blockstream CEO Adam Back was more optimistic, stating that “12-22 light minutes is no problem with 10-minute blocks.”
As of April 2023, data from Glassnode showed that Bitcoin’s Lightning Network is significantly cheaper to use than other legacy payments. The cost of sending value across the Lightning Network is 0.0029%, approximately 1,000 times cheaper than Mastercard or Visa payment processors.
There has been speculation about whether Musk will incorporate the use of cryptocurrencies on X, as he plans to transform it into an “everything app.” Reports in January 2023 suggested that the payments feature on X could accommodate cryptocurrencies if the opportunity arises. However, Musk has stated that he “never will” launch a crypto token on X.
This News Article was automatically generated by Bob the Bot (AI)
| Information | Details |
|---|---|
| Geography | Global |
| Countries | |
| Sentiment | neutral |
| Relevance Score | 1 |
| People | Adam Back, Elon Musk, Matt Corallo, Cathie Wood, Rune Christensen |
| Companies | Visa, Mastercard, ARK Invest, SpaceX, Blockstream, Tesla |
| Currencies | Bitcoin |
| Securities | None |
